Baby Mine
by ijustkeepswimming
Summary: Joey returns home early from her long haul and she has big news for Charlie...
1. Chapter 1

_Hi everyone. Sorry I haven't been updating much recently but I should be able to from now on, except maybe this coming Saturday. I really hope you enjoy the new story. This is more of a prologue than a chapter, which is why it's short but I hope you like it enough to keep reading. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Baby Mine**

**Chapter One**

Senior Constable Charlie Buckton was not particularly enjoying her day off work. To be fair, she hadn't much enjoyed _anything _since her girlfriend, Joey Collins had sailed out of her life a month and three days ago. She knew she deserved to be alone. She knew she had treated Joey terribly. And she also knew that she would do whatever it took to win her back and make things right, on the assumption that Joey would allow her to.

Joey had gone off on a long haul trawler trip for three months and then planned to return to Charlie to see if there was a chance for them to make it work. Charlie just hoped they had a future and that she hadn't permanently ruined the best relationship she'd ever had.

"Oh, go away," she grumped to herself when she heard a knock on the back door.

She remained lying on top of the blankets on her bed, trying to refocus on her book, _Written on the Body _by Jeanette Winterson. Joey had left it behind and having heard so much about it, Charlie had decided that reading it herself would be a good way of filling her time until the love of her life came home.

"Go away!" she complained when the knock came again.

Giving into the fact that the visitor was not going away, Charlie hauled herself out of bed. Sighing dramatically, she stomped through the lounge and kitchen, thinking that whoever it was better not be selling something as she pulled open the door. Her jaw dropped and she stared with a vast amount of confusion as she found herself face to face with the woman she had only just been thinking about. Joey Collins was home two months early.

* * *

_Next time… Joey has big news for a very stunned Charlie…_


	2. Chapter 2

_Thanks to everyone who left such lovely feedback. I really appreciate it. Posting a new story into a public forum is always a big risk! I hope you continue to enjoy the story. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Two**

"Joey…" Charlie managed, her mouth hanging open in disbelief.

She had played out the scene of Joey's return so many times but she hadn't expected it to happen so soon, if at all.

"Hi," Joey replied softly, just about ready to burst into tears.

"I…" Charlie said, continuing to stare at her.

Finally remembering her manners, she stepped back, allowing the woman she loved to come inside. Joey thanked her and dumped her bags on the floor, relieved to sink into a kitchen chair. Charlie anxiously sat at the table, both delighted and worried by Joey's return.

"What are you…? I mean, I'm glad you're home. I'm… I'm so happy… but…"

"I lost my job," Joey told her. "I felt scared and alone and… well, you're the place I run to when that happens."

Charlie nodded quietly, her mind reeling.

"What happened?" she asked, never taking her eyes off her. "You're so good at your job…"

"I kept throwing up over the side of the boat and genuinely being useless," Joey told her.

Charlie remained confused.

"I thought it was weird, considering I grew up on boats and I've never been seasick a day in my life," Joey continued. "So when we docked briefly, I went to see a Doctor."

Charlie nodded, hanging on her every word.

"And I'm thirteen weeks pregnant."

Charlie's mouth hung open. She stammered a couple of times, not quite believing what she was hearing.

"What, um… what?"

"That's what I thought," Joey said quietly. "It's Robbo's. Obviously."

Charlie nodded, tears threatening to spill.

"So, they didn't really want me on board," Joey added. "So I lost my job. I've lost… everything. And I didn't know where to go or what to do."

Words still failing her, Charlie knelt in front of Joey, gathering her into her arms. They both wept.

* * *

It was another half hour before they spoke again. They had relocated to the lounge and were sat on the sofa together, Joey in Charlie's arms.

"So, you're thirteen weeks?" Charlie eventually asked, breaking the silence.

Joey nodded.

"Beginning of," she said. "My due date is 9th December."

She swallowed, feeling unwell.

"Baby Collins is around 7cm long and 14g in weight according the baby website I looked at," she said. "I've not read that far. It scares me."

Charlie held her a little tighter.

"I'm not surprised," she said softly.

"There are so many things I'm meant to have done now, Charlie," Joey said. "I haven't done anything. Not a single thing. And I'm not… I'm not ready to be a mother."

"There are… options," Charlie ventured.

"I can't get rid of it," Joey said quickly. "It's not the baby's fault."

"What about adoption?" Charlie said. "I'm not recommending anything, just… making suggestions."

Joey nodded and sighed, sinking back against Charlie. Suddenly everything they had been through and everything that had made her leave town in the first place no longer seemed to matter.

"Have you had scans and stuff?" Charlie asked.

"No," Joey replied.

"Not even when they did the pregnancy test?" the police officer said, surprised.

"They told me I was pregnant, turned around to pick up some forms and then discovered I'd gone," Joey explained. "I just ran. I didn't know what else to do."

Charlie closed her eyes, able to empathise all too much. She kissed Joey's temple.

"I went back to the boat and told them and they said I couldn't stay," Joey sighed. "I just… found my way here after that. I didn't know where else to go."

Charlie shifted so that she could look into Joey's eyes, holding onto both her hands.

"You did the right thing," she said. "I know we have… stuff to sort out but Joey, there's nothing I won't do to help you. Okay? I'm… I'm here."

Joey nodded. Gratitude came in tears as she sank back into her ex-girlfriend's embrace.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie takes Joey to the hospital…_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"Sorry just to dump all of this on you," Joey said. "I just… I didn't know where else to go."

Charlie continued to hold her.

"I'm glad you came here," she said. "I… I meant it when I said I was here for you. I'll… I'll be whatever you need me to be."

"Fancy being the baby's Dad?" Joey cracked.

She was surprised by how willing Charlie looked. Tenderly, she reached out and stroked Charlie's face, a gesture that she had made several times in a previous life.

"Is there any chance I could crash on the couch?" she asked. "I just… I spent almost everything I have on hostels and stuff while I was trying to get here. I… I was going to go to the housing drop in if they're still running it. I thought they might be able to help me figure out what the hell I'm supposed to do."

Charlie kept hold of her.

"You can stay in my room," she said.

Joey looked unsure.

"I'll crash with Ruby like I used to," Charlie promised. "I'm not… none of the 'us' stuff matters all that much right now. The most important thing is to get you back on your feet."

Joey nodded gratefully.

"And I think the first thing we need to do is get you to the hospital to get checked out," Charlie told her.

Joey looked horrified.

"I don't… Charlie, I can't," she protested.

"You need to, Joey," Charlie insisted. "You're twelve weeks gone. You should have had scans and all sorts by now. You should be having supplements and… and you need to be taking care of yourself."

Joey nodded. Tears escaped her. Charlie clutched her ever tighter and kissed the top of her head.

"You've come this far, Joey," she said. "You can do the rest of it. You can get through this."

Joey smiled, hoping that she was right.

"I'll help you however I can," Charlie promised. "I swear."

* * *

An hour later, Charlie and Joey were in a side room at the hospital. Charlie had brought Joey in and taken Rachel aside, desperate for a favour. Having outlined the situation, Charlie had persuaded Rachel to see Joey.

"I feel bad for taking up her time," Joey said from where she lay in the bed.

"It's her job," Charlie reminded her gently.

"But I'm jumping the queue," Joey pointed out.

"Not really," Charlie said, taking her hand. "She won't be here immediately. She knows she has other patients to see."

Joey sighed heavily and rested back against the pillows, closing her eyes but keeping hold of Charlie. It was strange to think that the woman who had broken her heart more than once, the woman she had fled so far from, was the one person she knew she could trust to take care of her now that she wasn't strong enough to take care of herself.

They both looked up when Rachel appeared. Joey smirked at Charlie, silently pointing out that the Doctor had invalidated her point.

"So, Charlie tells me that you're twelve weeks pregnant," Rachel said.

She could empathise. While she was pregnant now too, she was happy about it. She was thrilled. A baby was something that she had been on a long journey to have. But she also knew what it was like to be raped. And she couldn't bear to think of what it would feel like to get pregnant from such a horrific ordeal.

"Yes," Joey said quietly, not quite able to make eye contact.

She felt ashamed of the position she had ended up in. She was disgusted with herself every time she had to look in the mirror.

"Okay, well the first thing we need to do is an ultrasound," Rachel said. "And there are some other tests and things that should have been done already."

Joey lowered her head.

"Joey, I'm not criticising you," the Doctor promised, gently touching the arm that Charlie did not have hold of. "I think you're really brave for coming this far, especially if you haven't had any support until now."

Joey nodded but she still felt awful.

"How are you feeling generally?" Rachel asked.

Joey looked stricken. Rachel smiled kindly at her.

"What about physically speaking?" she asked. "We can deal with those things first."

"I'm really tired," Joey admitted. "I feel like there aren't enough hours in the world to sleep. I've had some cravings but nothing major. And um…"

She blushed as she looked at Charlie and then back at Rachel.

"I'm really constipated," she mumbled.

Charlie squeezed her hand, not wanting her to feel embarrassed.

"Well, we can definitely do something about that last one," Rachel promised.

Joey managed a grateful smile.

"Now, have you been taking folic acid?"

Joey looked blank.

"It's a good thing for pregnant women to take at the beginning," Charlie explained.

She paused a little anxiously, not wanting to reveal that she knew so much about pregnancy.

"After twelve weeks, you don't really need it," Rachel said. "We can figure all of that stuff out after the scan though."

Joey nodded, holding onto Charlie a little tighter.

"I will go and get the ultrasound machine and we'll go from there, okay?" Rachel suggested.

Joey nodded weakly. As usual, all she wanted to do was cry.

* * *

Ten minutes later, the Doctor returned with the machine.

"This is going to feel a bit cold," she warned, gently putting the gel on Joey's swollen belly.

Joey held onto Charlie, taking a deep breath as she prepared to see her baby for the first time. This was precisely the reason she had fled the hospital when she had first found out that she was pregnant. She hadn't been ready. She still wasn't ready. But she knew she couldn't keep running away.

She watched Charlie, whose eyes were riveted to the computer monitor.

"Time to meet your baby, Joey," Rachel said.

Charlie gently encouraged Joey to turn her head. She studied the screen while Rachel pointed to a tiny mass that she stated was the foetus growing inside her.

"When did you say your due date was?" the Doctor asked.

"9th December," Joey said. "But I only worked it out through some website. I could be wrong."

"No," Rachel said. "That's accurate. And Baby Collins looks to be growing perfectly well."

Joey managed a smile as she listened to what she presumed was the baby's heartbeat.

"And you're past the risk stage now," Rachel said. "So it looks like everything will be fine with carrying him or her to term and everything."

"Can you tell if it _is _a him or a her?" Joey wondered.

"Not accurately," Rachel said. "Not yet. I wouldn't like to give you false information."

Joey nodded. She knew what she wanted. She didn't want to have it confirmed and then taken away from her.

"The placenta is fully formed," Rachel said.

She gave the child's approximate length and weight and told her that its facial features were formed now.

"Can we get a picture printed?" Charlie asked.

Nobody was aware of it but she knew exactly how Joey was feeling. But if she could achieve anything now, it would be to help Joey accept and love her child and not fail it like she had with her own.

* * *

_Next time… Ruby and Leah welcome Joey home…_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

"Um… have we just stepped back in time?" Ruby asked from the doorway to the lounge.

She and Leah had arrived back home together to find Charlie and Joey sitting on the couch together. Both women stood up as if they had been caught out.

"Either that or we forward fasted two months," Leah replied.

"Hi," Joey said a little shyly. "I um… I came home early."

Ruby hurried forward and hugged her.

"I'm glad," she said sincerely. "Charlie's been a mess without you!"

The police officer coloured and looked awkward. They hadn't got as far as discussing how to explain that Joey hadn't come home for her. And she couldn't even begin to process how sad it made her. _Just be happy that she came home at all,_ she instructed herself. _She was in trouble and she came to you. Hold onto it. Hold onto her._

"I've been pretty messy too," Joey admitted.

The foursome sat down once Leah had also hugged the new arrival.

"Don't worry," she said. "I'm not going to take over your house again or anything, Leah. I'm going to look for accommodation first thing tomorrow."

"Joey, seriously, you're welcome here," Leah told her. "You don't have to rush off."

Joey looked awkward.

"It's just um… well, there's more than one of me," she revealed.

Both Leah and Ruby looked confused.

"Please tell me you haven't hooked up with someone new," Ruby begged, suddenly desperately worried about the woman she believed was her sister.

"I haven't," Joey promised. "Right now, I don't think I'll ever hook up with anyone again."

Again, Ruby looked upset.

"Not even…?"

She nodded towards Charlie.

"We haven't really discussed things like that yet," Charlie put in.

The last thing she wanted was to put Joey under any sort of pressure.

"Then who's the extra?" Leah asked.

"I'm nearly thirteen weeks pregnant," Joey confessed.

Her former housemates just stared at her.

"Um… sorry, what?" Ruby eventually managed.

Joey looked stricken. She had explained the situation too many times for one day. Charlie shifted forward.

"When she was attacked, she got pregnant but she didn't realise," she explained.

"I did take the morning after pill," Joey added quickly, fearing judgement. "But I guess it didn't work or…"

She shrugged unhappily.

"When she found out that she was pregnant, she decided to come back here," Charlie continued. "Where we can support her. As a family."

She looked pointedly at both of them.

"Oh, of course!" Leah said, bursting out of her shock. "Of course."

Ruby nodded eagerly.

"Well, you definitely need to stay here then," Leah said. "You shouldn't be facing any of this alone. I mean, we can work out sleeping arrangements and… stuff. It'll be fine."

She looked at Charlie who nodded. Quite frankly, she didn't care where she slept or for how long. All she wanted was for Joey to be comfortable and safe.

"You're all being very kind," Joey said to all of them. "I'm sorry just to spring it on you."

"Hey, none of this is your fault," Ruby said gently, touching her hand. "You don't need to apologise for anything."

Joey smiled gratefully.

"Thank you," she said.

"Have you been to see a doctor, Joey?" Leah asked, her voice full of concern.

"Yes, Charlie took me this morning," Joey said, looking at her ex-girlfriend.

She was relieved that the trust and hope she had put in her hands been well founded. Charlie had been absolutely perfect from the moment she stepped through the door. She had no idea where their own personal relationship was going but at least for now, that was the last thing on her mind. She was happy just to be back in Charlie's life and to feel protected and secure. She was relieved to finally feel safe again. It was an experience she thought she had lost forever.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie supports Joey and they attempt to discuss their relationship…_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

"I feel bad making you sleep on the couch," Joey protested, as she helped Charlie make up the bed.

It all felt very familiar. Back before there had ever been a hint of what they would eventually mean to each other, they had done just this and Joey had felt just as guilty.

"I'd feel worse putting a pregnant woman on the couch," Charlie told her.

Joey knew there was no point arguing.

"I'll find somewhere else to stay tomorrow," Joey said. "I know you've all said I don't have to but it'll be too much to squeeze me in here. You guys are already packed to the rafters."

Charlie shook her head.

"I'd rather sleep on the couch every night for the rest of my life than ship you off to some apartment where you'd be alone and have to deal with everything by yourself," she stated.

"It's just going to be such a squeeze," Joey protested.

"It doesn't matter," Charlie said. "You and the baby both being well is the most important thing."

Joey nodded and sank onto the edge of the bed. Charlie came to sit beside her.

"Rachel said to come to the hospital tomorrow to get all the test results," Joey said. "I don't even know what half those tests were for. I feel so lost in all of this."

Charlie put an arm around her.

"It's just illnesses that that baby is very unlikely to have," she said. "They're testing for Down's Syndrome and things like that. But it's nothing to worry about. They'll all be fine. But on the off chance that there is something wrong, at least we'll know what we're dealing with."

She opted not to analyse how willingly she was taking the baby on as if it were her own. But she meant everything she said – she would be whatever Joey wanted her to be.

"You really think everything will be okay?" Joey asked.

"I'm positive," Charlie said.

Joey yawned without warning and then giggled.

"I'm so tired these days," she complained.

Charlie put her hand on her back, rubbing gently.

"Then I suggest you get a good night's sleep," she said, smiling affectionately at her.

Joey nodded and yawned again.

They both stood and Charlie pulled back the bed covers, ready to tuck Joey in, just as she had so many months before.

"Goodnight, Joey," she said when Joey, already in her pyjamas, climbed in. "And I know this isn't what you wanted and that you probably weren't ready to come home. I don't even know if you'll ever forgive me but… I'm glad you're here. I'm happy to have to chance to support you and look after you. Honestly, I'll be whatever you need me to be. I won't let you down again."

Joey smiled, gazing up at her. She tried to focus on Charlie's betrayal but it was floating around in the back of her mind. All she could really remember now were the happy times and the love they had shared. Those were the only things she _wanted _to remember. And she wanted to feel that way again, even if it wasn't romantic.

As Charlie turned to leave, Joey caught hold of her hand.

"Lie with me," she requested.

Charlie tried not to get her hopes up but didn't hesitate in climbing onto the other side of the bed. She snuggled up behind her, wrapping her arms around her and kissing her shoulder. Both of them felt more peaceful than they had in months.

* * *

The following morning, Joey woke up with a start and hurtled out of the room. She smashed into the bathroom and sank onto her knees by the toilet. Charlie was right behind her, sleepy but holding back her hair and touching her back, desperately trying to soothe her.

"I'm thirteen weeks!" Joey complained between retches. "I'm not supposed to have morning sickness anymore according to the internet!"

Charlie sighed quietly and continued to support her.

"Maybe it's just taking the baby a while to catch on," she suggested. "But it'll go away soon."

Joey turned to face her, looking pale and worn.

"How can you be so sure?" she hissed.

Charlie wanted to tell her that she had been there. She had been in exactly the same position as Joey was now in and that for the most part, it had turned out alright. She wanted to use her own painful experience to comfort and reassure her. But the truth was her deepest, darkest secret and even if she did reveal it one day, now wasn't the time. Joey knowing that Ruby was really her daughter, the product of being raped as a teenager, would have consequences that she had to take into serious consideration.

"Just trust me," Charlie said.

Joey was about to respond but threw up some more instead.

* * *

Charlie and Joey stopped at the Diner after the hospital in order to have lunch. They'd received the good news that the baby was perfectly healthy and they had ruled out any detectable illnesses.

"How do you feel?" Charlie asked carefully.

"Yeah, I…"

Joey sighed.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I mean, I'm really happy that the baby's safe and well. I'd have to be a monster to want it to be sick or something. But I… I still have no idea how I'm going to do this."

"Which part exactly?" Charlie probed.

"The whole motherhood thing," Joey said. "How am I meant to do this by myself, Charlie?"

"I told you, you don't have to do this by yourself," Charlie reminded her.

"Charlie, when I asked you to be the Dad, I was joking," Joey smirked.

Charlie touched her hand, looking entirely serious.

"And when I said I would be, I wasn't," she said.

Joey looked at their hands, unsure of how she felt about the familiar thrill that shot through her when they'd touched. She couldn't even begin to analyse how she felt about the way Charlie had held her all night.

"That's a really nice thing to say," she said. "But you couldn't even commit to me for a night. How am I meant to believe you'll help me raise a child?"

She felt bad that Charlie looked so wounded but she knew she had to be honest.

"Especially when we're not even in a relationship," she added.

Charlie withdrew her hand and played with the crust of her sandwich. Her eyes were downcast and she felt firmly rejected.

"I know I let you down, Joey," she said to her plate. "But I'm different now. I'd absolutely commit to the baby."

Joey nodded, taking it as confirmation that Charlie didn't want to be her girlfriend anyway.

"I really appreciate your friendship," she said.

Charlie ditched her crust and downed the rest of her juice.

"You don't need to keep rubbing it in," she snapped.

She immediately felt guilty. Joey was in a terrible mess right now. She didn't need to be criticised.

"Rubbing what in?" Joey asked, sounded wounded.

"That we're not in a relationship," Charlie said. "That I completely fucked up and lost you and the baby that, if I hadn't screwed up, I would have parented, no question."

Joey gazed at her. She supposed that was how it would have been. It wasn't something she'd actually thought of before. She had felt so alone with her son or daughter from the start.

"I didn't mean to be hurtful," she ventured. "I just… I can't cope with being let down. You have so many issues that you still have to work out, Charlie."

"What issues?"

"What's your sexuality?"

"Bisexual. Next question?"

"Could you come out in a lesbian relationship?"

"Yes," Charlie replied without hesitation.

Joey just stared at her.

"I could be a bisexual in a relationship with a woman and I could love her child as if she or he were my own," Charlie pledged.

Joey looked unsure. Charlie had said all sorts of things about loving her and wanting to be with her. But she had cheated on her the first moment she got.

"I'm not pressuring you," Charlie said softly. "Or if I am, I don't mean to. I know I've got a hell of a lot to prove. But I need _you _to know that I'm ready, willing and able to do whatever it takes. I love you, Joey. I've loved from the moment we met and I will continue to love you until the day I die. And even if you can never love me again, I want to be there for you. I want to support you. I want to be to you and to the baby whatever you need me to be."

* * *

_Next time… Charlie helps Joey learn more about her baby…_


	6. Chapter 6

_For luckdog. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Six**

After lunch, Charlie and Joey went for a walk along the beach. The tension between them was obvious, as it could only be in their current situation, where they still had such strong feelings for each other.

"I um… I found this," Charlie said, pausing to dig around in her bag.

Joey stopped walking, wondering what she was about to pull out and present her with.

"I don't know how interesting it'll be but…"

She handed over a small book on babies. Joey smiled, accepting it.

"Where on earth did you find it?" she wondered, opening it up.

Charlie shoved her hands in her jeans pockets.

"It's mine," she said carefully.

Joey looked at her curiously.

"Why on earth do you have a baby book?" she wondered.

"Oh, just a school project I had to do when I was a kid," she lied. "Child development type stuff. Don't feel obliged to read it or anything but…"

Joey smiled and sat down with the book, tugging on Charlie's hand to sit with her. The police officer did it gratefully, feeling accepted after their awkward conversation in the Diner.

"So, at thirteen weeks, the baby is eleven and a half centimetres long," Joey read. "And weighs twenty grams. Cute."

She forced a smile, still uncomfortable with the life she was carrying in her womb.

"And she breathes and drinks and swallows and pees…"

She wrinkled her nose.

"Pees? She's peeing inside me?"

Charlie laughed at the genuine horror on her face.

"I think you're protected from urine," she assured her.

"Phew!" Joey said dramatically.

She flashed Charlie a grin. They were both starting to feel comfortable again.

"Ooh, she might be trying to smile too!" Joey enthused.

She and Charlie both beamed at each other.

"I hope she's a smiley baby," Joey mused. "I keep having nightmares that she's just going to cry and cry and hate me and I'm not going to be able to love her and…"

She frowned, shaking her head. Charlie dared to put her arm around her and was pleased when Joey leant against her, taking comfort in physical contact.

"Don't underestimate the bond you've already got," Charlie said.

"I don't feel particularly bonded," Joey admitted.

She peered at the book.

"And I am definitely not glowing!"

Charlie giggled.

"You'd be surprised," she said.

"If I am, it's the sweat dripping off me every time she makes me chuck up," Joey complained. "I'm sure it should have stopped by now."

"It should have, I think," Charlie said. "But you've just been checked out by Rachel so let's assume that it'll go soon."

Joey nodded her agreement.

"Thank you for taking care of me, Charlie," she said softly.

Charlie smiled but her throat ached with sadness.

"I know there's a lot to talk about," Joey ventured. "But you and I… it's not off the table if you don't want it to be."

Charlie jerked away so that she could see her face.

"It's not off the table?" she asked.

"I don't think I could ever close the door on us," Joey admitted. "I love you so much and we've been through so much together – good and bad. I… Well, all I know is that I found myself pregnant and alone and scared and you were the only person I even considered running to, even with everything that happened. That's got to mean something, right?"

Charlie hugged her, kissing the top of her head.

"I hope so," she said.

* * *

That night, as she had done the night before, Charlie tucked Joey into bed. And, as she had done the night before, Joey caught hold of her hand when she was leaving.

"Could you stay a while?" she asked.

She was desperately uncomfortable, feeling sick and very tired. She was eager for comfort.

Smiling, Charlie came to lie with her on the bed. She instinctively began to rub her tummy gently, soothing her. She felt Joey relax under her touch and watched her close her eyes.

"You're going to be a wonderful Dad," she said softly before she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and Joey have a heart to heart…_


	7. Chapter 7

_For Kazintaz. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Seven**

Charlie had happily spent the night with Joey again but felt anxious as it raised questions over breakfast.

"I thought you were meant to be sleeping on the sofa," VJ said to Charlie, getting right to the point. "Because Joey's here again."

As he said her name, he beamed at his latest housemate. She smiled back.

"I've been um… staying in with Joey to make sure she's okay," Charlie said.

It was at least partly true. VJ nodded and accepted it but Leah and Ruby both looked silently suspicious.

"Are you okay?" VJ asked Joey.

"Yeah," Joey replied. "I am."

They hadn't told him about the baby yet. Nobody was quite sure how.

"Because you're happy to be home?" VJ asked.

"Yes, I'm definitely happy to be home," Joey assured him.

"We missed you," VJ told her. "Especially Charlie. She kept crying."

Charlie cringed a little but didn't deny it. She _had _been crying a lot. She'd felt like her life was over when Joey had sailed away from her. And she was delighted that she was home, even in the circumstances.

* * *

"Thank you for taking time off to spend with me," Joey said.

She and Charlie had gone for another walk along the beach together.

"It's my pleasure," Charlie replied sincerely.

She was thrilled when Joey caught hold of her hand. They smiled softly at each other and kept walking.

"Did you really miss me that much while I was away?" Joey wondered. "Like VJ said?"

"Ah, I only missed you every second of the day," Charlie teased. "Nothing major."

Joey chuckled.

"I missed you too," she admitted. "I stood on the end of the boat and watched you until I couldn't even pretend to be able to see you. I dreamt about you. Every time something even remotely interesting happened, I just wanted to tell you all about it."

"I've been pretty much surgically attached to my phone just in case you got in touch," Charlie revealed. "I knew you wouldn't have any reception but just in case, I didn't want to miss anything."

Joey smiled as they sat down together.

"Charlie, why did you sleep with him?" Joey asked. "And you don't have to be too graphic about it."

Charlie swallowed, pondering her answer.

"I felt like my life was over," she said. "I thought Brett was going to keep me away from you forever and that I was going to have to face the world all by myself."

"That still doesn't make sense," Joey told her.

"Hugo kept calling me gay and I panicked," Charlie explained. "I don't know what I am, Joey. All I know is that I love you."

"If you really did, how could you have sex with someone else?" Joey wanted to know. "How could you take what we had, that beautiful night and… and ruin it, Charlie?"

"I don't know," Charlie sighed. "I just… I just…"

She sighed and rested her forehead on her knees. She was surprised when Joey shifted to put her arm around her. She turned her head, still resting on her knees and gazed at Joey.

"Did you enjoy it?" Joey asked.

"No," Charlie replied without hesitation.

"Did you enjoy it with me?"

"It was the best experience of my life," Charlie said.

Again, there was no delay. Joey knew she was speaking from her heart.

"Do you think you'll ever want to be with a guy again?" she asked.

"If I had you?" Charlie said. "No. I'd never want to be with anyone but you."

"But what if you get that desire again?" Joey asked. "To prove you're not gay… or to experience a guy again or…?"

"It wouldn't happen," Charlie told her. "I know I realised it too late and I know it was a terrible way to do it but I knew by being with him that I didn't care about labels anymore. I knew from then that I could be out and proud with you. I knew I could commit to you for the rest of my life."

They both smiled weakly.

"I wish you'd figured it out a different way," Joey remarked.

"Me too," Charlie agreed.

They sighed in unison.

"Could you commit to me now?" Joey asked.

Charlie dared not hope too hard.

"Absolutely," she replied.

"And the baby?"

Charlie smiled and sat up again.

"It would be an honour," she said.

Joey gazed lovingly at her. Charlie felt her heart skip a beat as they kissed.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and Joey settle into their new relationship…_


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

Charlie and Joey spent the rest of the day in a glow of happiness and it did not go unnoticed by their housemates.

"So, you're back together and it's for real this time?" Ruby quizzed them.

"Yes," Charlie confirmed, unable to stop smiling.

She caught hold of Joey's hand from where they both sat on the sofa, having indulged in takeaway pizza without plates, cutlery or a table.

"Cool," Ruby enthused. "I'm genuinely glad."

She smiled before tucking into another slice of pizza.

"Charlie's been a nightmare without you," she added, grinning wickedly at Charlie.

"I have not!" Charlie protested when Joey laughed.

"You have," Ruby said.

"Okay, I have," Charlie admitted.

She turned to smile at Joey, explaining that it was because she missed her so much. Joey lifted Charlie's hand and kissed it before reaching for more pizza.

"I missed you too," she said. "To be honest, I wish I'd never left in the first place. I wish I'd have stayed and tried to work through things."

"I understand why you left," Charlie said gently. "You were hurt."

Joey nodded.

"That's why I didn't fight harder for you to stay," Charlie admitted.

Joey tilted her head, eyeing her curiously.

"You'd been through so much and I was the last straw," Charlie said nervously.

She would never be comfortable with talking about this particular subject but she knew it had to be done. And in theory, the more open and honest they were about everything, the easier it would all become.

"You had to go and heal and fix yourself, get strong again," she said.

Joey nodded and smiled lovingly at her. Ruby watched their interaction with interest, gladness in her heart that they had been able to work things out.

"Well, I didn't quite manage the strong part but yeah, you're right," Joey agreed.

"I'd say you got strong," Ruby interjected.

Joey looked surprised. Charlie looked pleased and in agreement.

"I mean, you got all the way back here, didn't you?" Ruby continued. "You got terrible and frightening news, you know, in the circumstances but you got through it. You decided how you could heal and you came back here to do it. I think that's really brave."

Joey smiled weakly and thanked her.

"Honestly, anyone who can survive what you have, the… attack and the pregnancy and… and to be actually having the baby even though you must be terrified…"

She shook her head sadly.

"Anyone who can get through all of that and come out the other side, well, I admire them," she stated.

Charlie surveyed her with interest, a strange trembling in her soul. She took another slice of pizza and focussed on that instead.

"So, what does Baby Collins look like now?" Ruby asked, changing the subject. "Or is it Baby Collins-Buckton?"

She raised her eyebrows vigorously, making Charlie and Joey both laugh.

"Well, according to the book, everything should be developing nicely," Charlie said.

She and Joey had spent a fair bit of time reading through it that afternoon. It had felt really nice.

"She has a liver and pancreas that both work," she said. "And intestines too."

Ruby pulled a face.

"Maybe we shouldn't talk about intestines over dinner, sweetie," Joey said, tapping her girlfriend's knee.

It felt so nice to be close again. She hoped their rekindled love would never end.

"Oh and she has milk teeth developing below the gums, ready for that delightful teething stage!" Charlie grinned. "And her vocal chords are developing so we can look forward to lots of crying and whinging!"

Ruby laughed. Joey looked stricken.

"Sorry," Charlie said quickly.

She had got so carried away with the idea of having a baby that she'd temporarily forgotten just how terrified Joey was. She cursed herself for it. She knew exactly what Joey was going through after all.

"It's fine," Joey assured her. "I'm just still getting my head around everything."

"It'll be easier though, now you have Charlie, won't it?" Ruby said. "I mean, two parents and everything…"

"Yeah, I'll leave her to deal with the screaming," Joey smirked.

Charlie laughed and insisted they would take it in turns.

"Seriously though," she added. "I meant it when I said I'd do anything you needed me to. Even if it does involve whinging and whining."

"And you'll help with the baby too?" Joey cracked.

Charlie laughed and kissed her temple. Ruby couldn't have been happier.

* * *

That evening, there was no question over whether Charlie and Joey would be spending the night together. At bedtime, they said goodnight to Leah and Ruby and headed to their room, shutting the door behind them. They immediately fell into each other's arms, kissing their way over to the bed, where Charlie gently lay Joey on her back.

Joey reached up and ran her hands through Charlie's hair, gazing into her eyes. She smiled lovingly at her. She pulled her in for a deeper, more sensual kiss.

"I love you so much," she said sincerely.

Charlie beamed and kissed her again. She felt thrills run through her as she felt Joey touching her face and her back.

"Are there rules?" the police officer suddenly asked.

"To loving you?" Joey teased.

Charlie laughed.

"I mean… sex and… and pregnancy," she explained.

"I don't think so," Joey said. "Shall we look at the book?"

Charlie laughed and kissed her forehead. She released Joey, who dug into her bag.

"I fear we may have ruined the moment," Charlie fretted, sitting beside her.

"We can still do it," Joey told her, pointing at the page in the book. "But I think we should keep it… gentle."

She blushed shyly. Charlie put her arm around her.

"I think we can manage that," she said. "If… if you want to? I mean, I'd understand if you didn't after what I did and…"

Joey interrupted her with a kiss.

"We're moving on, remember?" she whispered. "Together?"

Charlie nodded and kissed her again.

"I think this is probably the happiest day of my life," she said.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie, Joey and Ruby settle into family life together…_


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

"I still think it's kind of gross," Joey complained.

She giggled as Charlie responded by kissing her tummy. It was a couple of weeks later and Joey was upset to have found a distinct line running from her navel to her nether regions. But as ever, Charlie had made her feel better about it by insisting that every inch of her was beautiful.

"You really know how to make a girl feel good," she remarked.

Charlie grinned and kissed further down. Joey lay back in sheer delight as her morning started with pleasure. It was much, much better than the sickness she had endured for the last few weeks. She was very relieved that that particular part of her pregnancy was over.

* * *

That evening, Charlie was relieved to be finished at work. She had been feeling out of sorts for over a week now but she couldn't place what was wrong. Still, she wasn't prepared to waste time puzzling over it. Life was perfect as far as she was concerned.

Work was going well, things were great with Ruby and she was back with Joey, the love of her life. They were even preparing to have a baby together. It might not have occurred in the best of circumstances, well, it had occurred in the very worst of circumstances, but Charlie was hopeful that she and Joey would be able to make the very best of the situation.

Stopping off at the shops to get pickled gherkins, as requested by Joey, who in a normal world didn't even like them, Charlie was eager to get home to her. She was dedicated to spending as much happy time with her as possible. Joey was frightened by her pregnancy and Charlie knew her heart was breaking over it. So she was determined to make things as easy as they could possibly be.

* * *

"Honey, I'm home!" Charlie called when she walked through the door.

"I'm in here!" Joey called back.

Out of work but still fit and able as far as she was concerned, Joey had devoted her time to housekeeping and being generally useful. It was much the same as when she had lived with them all before. She'd wanted to help where she could while Charlie, Leah, Ruby and VJ were being kind enough to put her up.

"Hey, sweetheart," Charlie greeted, bending to kiss her cheek.

"Did you bring the gherkins?" Joey asked eagerly.

Charlie frowned.

"Is that all you love me for?" she asked.

Joey chuckled and kissed her again.

"I think we'd be here all day if I told you all the reasons I love you," she purred.

Charlie blushed and climbed onto the couch, pulling her girlfriend into her arms.

"I've got time," she decided.

"With gherkins?" Joey asked hopefully.

"With gherkins!" Charlie agreed in amusement.

* * *

Over dinner, with gherkins on the side for Joey, Ruby was busy interrogating the mother of the baby she had decided she would consider to be a niece or a nephew. Like Charlie, she was doing her best to make Joey feel better about the pregnancy.

"So, how big is she now?" she asked.

"Well, according to the book, she should be about 10cm long," Joey said. "And she's supposed to weigh 50g."

"You don't look pregnant," VJ stated. "I mean, you're still all slim and everything."

"Thank you!" Joey grinned.

The changing shape and expansion of her body was something that Joey was struggling to get her head around. It made the pregnancy feel more like an invasion and she was struggling with each new feature. She wondered if she would ever get away from Robbo and what he had done to her and just hoped that Baby Collins would be a point of joy and not just a constant reminder.

"Have you finished your iPod playlist?" Charlie asked.

With the baby developing hearing skills, they had decided to play it music and try to engage it with happy, nice things.

"What list?" Ruby wondered.

Charlie quickly explained, which made Ruby coo and tease them.

"I think my baby niece or nephew is going to be very, very happy," the teenager decided.

* * *

That night, with the iPod playing gently, Charlie and Joey were getting ready for bed.

"I think it's so cute that Ruby is so attached to the baby already," Joey mused, changing into her pyjamas.

"Yeah," Charlie said, sounding awkward.

She slipped into bed beside Joey who eyed her curiously.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

Charlie took several breaths, wondering where to start.

"Joey, there's something I need to tell you," she admitted.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie tells Joey the truth about Ruby…_


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Charlie hesitated but Joey continued to provide her rapt attention. She tried and failed to start several times until Joey caught hold of her hand, looking into her eyes.

"Charlie, there's nothing you can't tell me," Joey assured her.

"I um… I understand a bit more about what you're going through than I let on before," Charlie admitted.

Joey furrowed her brow in confusion.

"I don't understand," she said.

"When… when I was younger, I was raped too," Charlie explained.

She felt her girlfriend's grip tighten slightly on her hands and she dared to meet her gaze.

"You were raped?" Joey asked carefully.

Charlie nodded in silence.

"Charlie, I'm so sorry," Joey said, pulling her into an embrace. "I had no idea. I'm so sorry."

Charlie closed her eyes, sinking into Joey's arms. But the hard part wasn't over yet. When Joey eventually released her, tears glistening in her eyes, she ploughed on.

"I got pregnant too," she said. "Like you have."

Joey looked bewildered again.

"But you don't have a baby," she said dumbly.

Charlie swallowed.

"I um… I had her adopted," she admitted.

Joey nodded, understanding how hard it must have been for her. It was an option she had deeply considered. If she didn't have Charlie as such a support, it would probably still be on the cards.

"Charlie, there's nothing wrong with that," Joey told her, holding her hands again. "The only reason I could even consider keeping this one…"

She patted her tummy.

"Is because I have you," she continued. "If you didn't have that support…"

"I had some support," Charlie ventured. "But it… it wasn't enough."

"What support did you have?" Joey wondered.

She didn't recall her beloved ever mentioning a serious, long term boyfriend.

"My parents," Charlie explained. "I was fourteen."

Joey's eyes widened in shock.

"You were fourteen?" she exclaimed, but quietly. "When you were raped?"

Charlie nodded.

"And you were pregnant?"

She nodded again. Once more, Joey reached out to hold her. They were both rather tearful.

"I can't believe you went through that," Joey sighed, holding her tightly.

"I've never told anyone before," Charlie said. "Except my parents and my Auntie Michelle."

She swallowed, not quite sure how she was going to share the rest of it. Joey had been perfect but she could still judge her if she knew the whole truth.

"Who… who attacked you?" Joey wondered when they settled back against the pillows, still cuddling but able to see each other's faces.

"He was my boyfriend at the time," Charlie explained. "I thought he was wonderful and he was the most popular boy in school. At fourteen, I was delusional and thought I was in love with him and that we were going to get married and have kids. Kind of ironic really, considering what happened."

She sighed heavily. Joey waited patiently for her to continue.

"But all of that was a plan for the future, you know?" she said sadly. "I wasn't ready for sex or anything. But I guess he was and when I wouldn't agree to do it, he… he forced me."

She closed her eyes, trying to block out the memories of that awful night.

"I never told anyone until I realised I was pregnant," she continued. "Then I had to break the news to my parents. They were so ashamed of me."

Joey jerked her head up.

"How could they be ashamed of you?" she asked, horrified.

"Because I let myself get into such a state," Charlie said. "I don't know. My relationship with them both changed from that day on. Dad and I still can't talk about any of it."

Joey nodded but felt desperately sad for her.

"Anyway, the baby was born but I couldn't cope," Charlie revealed. "I ran away from home and lived with Auntie Michelle for a year. My parents raised my daughter and by the time I came back, she thought they were her parents."

Joey sat upright, hoping Charlie wasn't about to say what she thought she was.

"Ruby was raised as my sister," Charlie admitted quietly. "But she's been my daughter all along."

Joey just stared at her.

"W… What?" she managed.

Charlie sat up too and held her hand.

"Please don't hate me," she begged. "I wanted to be her Mum. I did. I really did. I just…"

She sighed and tears rolled down her cheeks. She hung her head and waited for the rejection. It had seemed like a good idea to be honest with Joey, especially in the circumstances but she feared it was a confession she would live to regret.

"I'm sorry," she wept.

She was surprised but relieved when Joey gathered her into her arms. She kissed the top of her head and told her she loved her.

"And nothing will ever, ever change that," she promised.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie is in for a big shock…_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Charlie woke up with a heavy, sick feeling hanging over her after her confession the night before. In some ways, it was a huge weight off to have finally shared her secret with someone she trusted. Well, it was a weight off to have found someone she actually trusted that much. But sharing the truth had somehow made it all the more real and she was worried about the pressure it would put on Joey, especially being that she was living with Ruby.

"Mor…"

Joey was interrupted by Charlie running to the toilet to throw up.

By the time she came back, Joey was sitting up in bed looking rather bemused. Her hair was untidy from sleep and she looked adorable as far as Charlie was concerned.

"Sorry about that," the police officer said, crawling back into bed.

"If that's sympathy sickness, you're a bit late," Joey remarked, taking Charlie into her arms.

"I think I might be a bit stressed over… well, you know," Charlie said.

Joey nodded and kissed the top of her head.

"Either that or you're pregnant too," she joked.

Charlie laughed but felt a small twinge of panic twist inside her. She pushed it away. Now was a time to be happy with her girlfriend, not panic about something that wasn't even real.

* * *

It was a few days later and Charlie was relieved to find that Joey's behaviour towards either her or Ruby hadn't changed in the slightest. She was as relaxed and loving towards them as she always had been.

However, not all was feeling well inside her. For a while now, Charlie had been feeling off colour. She'd kept putting it down to all the stress surrounding their lives recently but she also couldn't get Joey's off hand pregnancy comment out of her head.

On her lunch break, she sneaked off to a pharmacy way out on the edge of town to reduce the chances of bumping into anyone she knew. She went to a café and ordered lunch before heading into the toilet to take the test.

Last time she had taken a test like this, she had been a teenager and pregnant with Ruby. It had felt like the end of the world. And now, as she watched the stick indicate that she was indeed pregnant, it felt the same – only this time, it was all her own fault.

* * *

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" Joey asked.

Charlie had arrived home subdued, as she tried to process her latest drama. She sat at the kitchen table while her generous girlfriend cooked for the whole family. While she wasn't working, she wasn't contributing as much as she would like to when it came to finances. Leah had said it was fine but Joey was determined to contribute in her own way whenever she could.

"Charlie?" she nudged.

The police officer looked up sharply.

"Sorry, what?" she managed.

Joey came to sit in the other chair and took her hands, looking her in the eye.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing," Charlie lied.

"What happened to full, uncensored honesty?" Joey said, reminding her of her own promise.

Charlie gazed at her. Joey might well be the most understanding person that she had ever met but she knew this would be a step too far. She might have been kind about her confession regarding Ruby but there was no way she would stand by her if she knew she was pregnant with Hugo's baby – from the one night stand that had ended their relationship the first time around.

"Is it about the stuff you told me the other night?" Joey asked.

Charlie latched onto it without thinking.

"Yeah," she lied. "Talking about it just brought it all back again."

Joey nodded in understanding. She leant forward and kissed her gently on the lips.

"I know it's hard," she said. "And seeing me begin to show and everything must remind you a lot of… stuff. But I think you're really brave for what you went through and I'm touched that you could be so honest with me about it. And if you ever need to talk about anything… anything at all, I'm here, okay? You listened for hours when I was trying to deal with what Robbo did to me so if you need to…"

Charlie smiled weakly. Tears stung her eyes. Noticing, Joey reached out to hold her.

"I love you, Charlie," she said. "There's nothing we can't face as long as we're together."

Charlie clung to her for all she was worth.

* * *

That night in bed, Charlie just couldn't seem to settle. While Joey seemed to be blossoming in her pregnancy and starting to accept that she was really going to have a baby, Charlie was in utter turmoil. She felt the familiar cramps she had endured when she'd been pregnant with Ruby and she wondered now why it had taken so long to figure out what was wrong. She had worked out that she was eight weeks and she had no idea what to do about it.

"Sweetheart, please tell me what I can do to make things better," Joey requested.

Charlie rolled over and snuggled up to her. She wanted to tell her the truth. But she knew she would lose her all over again. And if that happened, it would be the end of her world.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie has an emergency while Joey comes face to face with Hugo…_


	12. Chapter 12

_The next few chapters might be pretty emotional and a bit controversial but I hope you'll go with it. And you must know me well enough by now to know it'll all be alright in the end! Lol. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Twelve**

It had been a weird week and Joey was trying not to be frustrated by Charlie's lack of communication. She couldn't help but fret that her girlfriend was changing her mind about them and was looking for a way out. The only reason that she felt able to be moderately excited about the baby she was carrying was because she had Charlie's love and support. She didn't think she would be able to cope without her.

"Honestly, I'm fine," Charlie said, although her face was saying the opposite.

She was tearful and looked like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders as they sat at the breakfast table together.

"Charlie, please?" Joey begged. "I need you to be honest with me. If you're changing your mind about us…"

Charlie caught hold of her hand across the table.

"I will never ever change my mind about us," she stated so firmly that Joey believed her.

"Then what is it?" she asked, keeping hold of her girlfriend's hand. "What's wrong?"

"I'm just hormonal," Charlie told her.

Tears stung her eyes as she realised what she needed to do.

"I'm the pregnant one!" Joey laughed.

Charlie chuckled softly but the humour got stuck in her throat.

"Sorry," she said sincerely. "I just… Sorry."

Joey frowned, still not understanding what was wrong with her.

"There's nothing you can't tell me, Charlie," she insisted.

Charlie didn't want to test the theory. She squeezed Joey's hand and leant over to kiss her, promising dinner when she got home from work.

* * *

At work, Charlie took several breaths as she tried to pluck up the courage to phone a clinic just outside of town. Finally, she lifted the receiver and dialled. After a couple of rings, an inappropriately cheerful woman phoned and asked how she could help.

"I need… I need to book a termination," Charlie said.

She hung up and burst into tears without making the appointment.

* * *

Joey took several breaths and forced herself to leave the house. Without Charlie by her side, she hadn't ventured out much but if this was going to be her permanent home, she needed to be brave and face everyone, even if it meant risking bumping into Brett or Hugo.

She was very obviously pregnant now and her bump was really starting to grow. She was confused every time she looked down at her belly, torn between revulsion over what Robbo had done to her and quiet joy that there was a baby growing inside her and that she and Charlie were going to raise it together.

Arriving at the Diner, she ordered an orange juice from Colleen.

"Oh! Look at you!" the town gossip remarked. "Aren't you… um…"

She fought for a word to try and be polite.

"Pregnant," Joey informed her.

The older woman was so startled she dropped the glass for Joey's juice.

"Pregnant?" she exclaimed. "But you're… you're um…"

"A lesbian," Joey said helpfully.

Colleen looked exceptionally flustered. Joey tried not to look amused.

"So how… um…?"

"It's best you don't know," Joey told her.

Colleen continued to fumble around to create Joey's order while Leah stepped up and offered to take over.

"Thank you," Joey said when Colleen hurried back into the kitchen.

"It didn't looked like either of you were enjoying the conversation!" Leah remarked.

Opting to take her break, she poured a second drink and came to sit with her at a table.

"So, you and Charlie are starting to tell people about the baby then?" she asked.

"Yeah," Joey said. "We're past the twelve week mark and everything and well, I don't want people thinking I'm chubby!"

They both laughed at the joke.

"I'm glad you're feeling a bit more secure about everything," Leah said sincerely. "I can't imagine that it's been easy to accept the pregnancy and everything."

Joey exhaled slowly.

"There were times when I wanted to kill myself just to not be pregnant anymore," she admitted awkwardly. "I just… I felt like he'd left poison inside me. But with Charlie helping me… I feel like we at least stand a chance."

Leah nodded, touching her friend's hand.

"Has she… been okay lately?" she asked.

"No," Joey said. "But she won't tell me what's wrong."

* * *

Charlie cried out as Heath Braxton shoved her in the stomach and ran away. She stumbled to the ground, winded and in pain. She and Watson had been breaking up a fight but now didn't seem the right time to chase after them.

"Are you okay, Charlie?" Watson asked worriedly, helping her up.

"I need to get back to the station," Charlie replied urgently.

* * *

"I can't believe the baby can get hiccups before it's even born!" Joey giggled.

Juice had become lunch with Leah and they were thoroughly enjoying spending time together and reading the baby book. It brought back memories for Leah, who was also desperate to support her friend.

"I can imagine it would look pretty cute if we could see it," she said.

They both looked up when a shadow fell over them. It was Hugo Austin.

* * *

Charlie was out of the station almost as soon as she had arrived. Shaking and upset, she jumped into her car and sped over to the hospital where she took Rachel aside and begged to be seen.

"Um… sure," the Doctor said, leading her into a side room.

She shut the door to give them privacy.

"What's wrong?" she asked worriedly.

"I think I'm having a miscarriage," Charlie told her.

* * *

"I um… I heard you were back in town," Hugo ventured. "And I just wanted to say…"

"Welcome back?" Joey remarked rather bitterly.

"Well, just… I'm sorry," he said, hovering anxiously.

He was a man capable of a lot of things but he still felt bad that he had broken up a relationship.

"And anything there might have been between Charlie and I is completely over," he added. "I'm not interested in her, she's not interested in me and there's nothing connecting us."

* * *

Without judging or quizzing Charlie on how she could be pregnant in a lesbian relationship, Rachel got her onto the bed and hurried off to find the correct equipment. She returned quickly with what was probably the same scanner she had used when Joey had come to the hospital. In silence, she turned the machine on and set everything up.

"How many weeks do you think you are?" she asked.

"Not many," Charlie said. "Eight or nine, I think."

Rachel nodded and put the cold jelly on Charlie's still toned tummy. Charlie held her breath and couldn't relax until she heard the familiar sound of the baby's heartbeat. She flopped back against the bed and closed her eyes in sheer relief.

"Baby's okay," Rachel assured her. "And judging by this, I'd say you're nine weeks."

Charlie nodded weakly. She was so relieved that her child was okay. She knew she could never go through with a termination. And that meant she had to tell Joey the truth.

* * *

"I know," Joey said simply. "It was a one night thing and there need be no repercussions. Charlie and I are back together and we're going to be a family."

Hugo was surprised. Joey had been furious when she'd found out the truth. He was surprised that she had returned to the Bay so quickly and had been so eager to get back together with her cheating partner.

"Well um… good," he said. "I'm happy for you."

"And I hear you're happy and in love with Martha now," Joey said. "Good for you."

He nodded and hurried off on his way.

"You handled that very well," Leah said, noting the anxiety now evident on Joey's face.

"Did I?" Joey asked worriedly.

"Definitely," her friend promised.

They were interrupted by Joey's phone ringing. It was Charlie.

* * *

_Next time… Joey learns that Charlie is pregnant…_


	13. Chapter 13

_This one might not be the easiest chapter. Sorry! Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Thirteen**

Joey arrived at the hospital in a desperate hurry and threw herself out of Leah's car before she had actually stopped. She stumbled and felt immediately guilty. In her rush to make sure Charlie was okay, she had almost forgotten she was pregnant and she knew all it would take was a small fall and she could essentially be putting her baby in danger.

Apologising to her tummy and patting it, she headed still quickly but in a gentler manner, into the hospital where she immediately asked for Charlie.

"Joey, hi," Rachel greeted when she spotted her. "I'll take you through."

"Thanks," Joey said gratefully. "Is she okay?"

Rachel looked awkward and remained silent, letting her into Charlie's side room.

"Charlie!" Joey said, immediately rushing up and hugging her.

Charlie held onto her girlfriend tightly, fearing that it could be the last time.

"Charlie, what happened to you?" Joey asked, cupping her face and checking for signs of injury.

Rachel ducked silently out of the room.

"Did you get hurt at work or…?"

"I think you need to sit down," Charlie said awkwardly.

Joey looked on the verge of panic.

"Are you sick? Is it serious? Please say it isn't serious!"

"I'm not sick," Charlie assured her as she pulled up a chair.

They held hands.

"But it is serious," Charlie continued. "And I… I don't know whether I'm going to lose you all over again because of it."

Joey swallowed but tried to look confident. She didn't think she'd cope with the world being ripped out from underneath her yet again.

"I'm pregnant," Charlie confessed.

She tried to keep her eye closed as she waited for a response but Joey's silence was deafening. She looked at her and saw the distress on her face.

"I thought you said you waited for me…" Joey eventually said.

She trailed off as realisation dawned on her.

"It's Hugo's," she concluded. "You're pregnant by the man you cheated on me with."

"Joey, I'm so sorry…"

"So you didn't even use protection when you screwed him and then came back to me," Joey accused, pulling a face.

"I didn't… think about…"

"Me," Joey interjected. "That's what it all goes back to. You didn't think about me. You didn't care about me. What on earth was I thinking coming back here?"

Utterly disgusted, she stormed back out of the room as fast as she had come. Defeated, Charlie sank back on the bed, feeling like her life was ending all over again.

* * *

It was later in the day when Charlie found Joey sitting alone on the beach. She sat down awkwardly beside her and they sat in silence for a few moments.

"Joey, I'm so sorry," Charlie eventually managed. "I never thought for a second that I could have got pregnant. I've been on the pill for ages and I'd only just come off a month or so before because I'd decided I was going to stay single. I guess I thought… Well, I know people who've been on it for a long time and it's taken almost a year of trying to get pregnant. I didn't think that one, drunken mistake would…"

She sighed and rested her elbows on her knees, her chin against her palms.

"When did you know?" Joey asked.

"A few days ago," Charlie replied.

"Is that why you went weird on me?"

Charlie nodded. Joey turned her face to look at her. Charlie was sad to see the emptiness in her eyes and sighed heavily.

"So, what?" Joey asked. "You went to the hospital to get the delightful news confirmed?"

Her voice dripped with bitter sarcasm.

"I got hurt at work," Charlie explained.

She tried not to hope at the concerned way Joey looked at her.

"I started bleeding and I thought I'd lost the baby," she continued. "I'd already attempted to book an appointment to have a termination but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I went to the hospital to see if everything was… okay."

Joey nodded and closed her eyes. Everything just felt like too much to deal with.

"And is it?" she asked quietly.

"The baby's safe," Charlie confirmed.

Joey nodded and turned back to look out at the horizon she had only been sailing on a few weeks ago. She was overwhelmed by just how quickly life seemed to turn everything on its head.

"Congratulations, I guess," she said, somewhere between sad and sardonic.

Charlie swallowed, studying her girlfriend's profile.

"What does this mean for us, Joey?" Charlie asked carefully.

"It means I'm back to square one," Joey told her. "It means that just when I thought I was safe and secure and in love, you fucked it all up. Again. Now I'm pregnant and alone. And so are you."

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and Joey reach some decisions about their relationship…_


	14. Chapter 14

_This might be a difficult chapter in parts but I hope you enjoy it anyway. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Fourteen**

Joey had been wandering around town all day, feeling lost and alone. She had gone to the housing office in town and got some numbers for some local youth hostels, although none of them sounded particularly appealing. And of course, none of them would have her support network. Namely, they wouldn't have Charlie, and Joey had no idea how she was meant to do this without her.

Sighing heavily, she forced herself to circle back and go home. She had to pack her things and attempt to start yet another new life. It seemed she was making quite a habit of that and nothing ever seemed to work out for her.

"Joey!" Charlie said desperately, the moment she walked through the door.

It seemed like she had been watching out for her.

"I'm not staying," Joey said coldly, marching through the lounge and into 'their' room, ready to throw some things in her bag.

"Joey, please can we talk about this?" Charlie begged, following her.

"There's nothing to talk about," Joey insisted, digging her bag out from the wardrobe and trying not to cry when she caught sight of the box of baby things she and Charlie had been buying in preparation for 'their' child.

"Joey, you can't just leave like this," Charlie said. "Not after everything we've been through."

"Everything you've put me through, you mean," Joey snapped bitterly.

Charlie touched her hand. Joey leapt away as if she had been burnt.

"I'll get rid of it," Charlie said.

The words blurted out of her mouth before she could stop them. Tears rolled down her cheeks at the mere thought of getting rid of her baby.

"Excuse me?"

"If… if it means I can keep you, I'll go through with the termination," Charlie sobbed. "I will. And we never need to let that night ruin us ever again."

Joey sat on the edge of the bed, staring at her.

"You're prepared to have a termination in order to keep me as your girlfriend?" she asked.

Charlie inwardly panicked that she might have made things worse. She steeled herself to sit beside her and was relieved when Joey allowed her to take her hand.

"I love you more than life itself, Joey," she said sincerely. "There's nothing I wouldn't do to keep you. Please… please don't leave me again. I'll die without you."

Joey hesitated and looked at the way Charlie held onto her.

"I just… I don't see how this can work," she said awkwardly. "I love you, Charlie. I think I'll love you for the rest of my life. But… you cheated on me and…"

"And you forgave me for it," Charlie reminded her.

Joey nodded. She had forgiven her. She'd been intent on their new life together. But the baby changed everything and she told her so.

"I said I'd have a termination," Charlie said.

"Why would you do that?" Joey wondered.

"Because I love you and I want to be with you," Charlie said. "I'd do anything for you. Even… even this."

Joey swallowed uncertainly, not sure how to proceed.

"Okay," she eventually said. "If I don't have to live with the reminder of what you did…"

Charlie nodded and tried to stem her tears.

* * *

The next morning, having slept side by side with Joey, Charlie tried to brace herself for the day ahead. She had a termination scheduled for lunch time and everything in her was telling her not to do it. She wanted her baby. She wanted a second chance to raise a child. But she loved Joey and there was no way she could bear to lose her a second time.

Bracing herself before her appointment, Charlie headed into the bathroom and threw up. She sank onto the cold floor and rested her head in her hands, her elbows on the knees. She looked at the tiny bump of her belly.

"I'm so sorry, my baby," she said softly. "I'm so sorry. I wanted to keep you. I did. I wanted to love you and raise you and have you call me 'Mum' like Ruby never will. I wanted you to be my second chance but… I love Joey so much. I can't lose her. And if this is her demand, I…"

She touched her tummy and wept.

"I'm so sorry, my darling baby," she said.

* * *

Joey hovered outside the bathroom door, having heard Charlie's words. The whole thing had been bothering her all night. How could she ask someone to abort their child just because she didn't want it? But how could she live with a baby that was the product of a night that had broken her heart? She looked down at her now rounded tummy and felt her own baby shifting around inside. _If I can live with this one, then surely I can live with that one too_, she thought to herself.

Taking a breath, she opened the bathroom door and came to sit beside Charlie on the floor. Charlie tried to pretend that she hadn't been crying, that she hadn't been grieving for what she was about to lose.

"Don't do it," Joey said quietly.

"I'm sorry," Charlie said. "I know you don't want me to have it but…"

"I mean don't go for the appointment," Joey said.

Charlie looked up sharply. Her eyes were bloodshot but Joey saw a glimmer of confused hope there.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"We can have the baby," Joey said.

"We…?"

"Me and you," Joey said. "We can be a strange little family all together."

"But you said…"

"I hate that you cheated on me," Joey admitted. "I feel sick every time I think about it. And it'll take me a while to get my head around the idea of you having Hugo's child and worse, that he might want something to do with it."

Charlie nodded quietly.

"But then, it took me a while to get my head around the idea of having Robbo's baby," Joey continued. "I still worry now that I'm not going to be able to bond with her and love her the way I'm supposed to. But you're the one that gave me any sort of hope, Charlie. I think… I think we can do this. Together."

Charlie breathed a sigh of relief and sank against her girlfriend.

"Please don't leave me," she begged.

"I won't," Joey replied, holding her and stroking her hair. "I won't."

"I love you, Joey," Charlie said. "I don't think I can live without you."

"You won't have to," Joey replied. "From now on it'll be the five of us – me, you, Ruby and the babies."

She laughed softly. It might not have been something she'd picked but the more she thought about it, the more she could deal with the idea.

"We might need to move out," Charlie murmured.

Joey nodded, leaning in to kiss her.

"One step at a time," she suggested.

* * *

_Next time… Ruby is stunned to learn Charlie and Joey's latest news, as are Hugo and Martha…_


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

"What's this all about?" Ruby asked curiously when Charlie and Joey sat her down before school. "Is something wrong? You guys haven't been very happy the last couple of days…"

She had been worried about the couple breaking up so soon after they'd got back together.

"There's going to be a new addition to our family," Charlie told her.

"I know," Ruby said. "Joey's baby."

"There's another one," Charlie told her, feeling awkward.

"You're having twins?" Ruby asked Joey, eyes wide.

Her jaw hung open for several moments before Charlie found her words again.

"No," she said. "_I'm _pregnant too."

Ruby's mouth hung open again. She stared in disbelief at the woman she thought was her sister.

"What do you mean, you're pregnant?" she asked slowly.

"I'm nine weeks," Charlie said. "I didn't realise until very recently but that night…"

She trailed off and looked at Joey.

"Wow, you were busy," Ruby remarked sourly.

Charlie was heartbroken at the disgust on her face. She never wanted her precious daughter to think badly of her.

"So, just to clarify, Hugo's the Dad, right?" Ruby barked.

Charlie nodded. She was relieved when Joey gently touched her hand. Ruby aimed her gaze at Joey.

"And you're okay with this?" she asked.

"Not thrilled," Joey admitted. "But we've talked a lot and…"

"And you're so vulnerable that you've got no choice but to stay with _her_," Ruby snapped.

Both women were stunned by the venom in her voice.

"We love each other," Joey insisted. "And I can't say it was easy to hear the consequences of Charlie's betrayal but we've worked through it. We want to be a family."

"Don't you have any self respect?" Ruby asked more quietly.

"It's really not about that," Joey told her, still holding Charlie's hand.

She could feel her trembling.

"Then what is it about?" Ruby asked, feeling bad but justified for being hard on Charlie. "How could you even begin to think about raising the product of an affair?"

"How could I even begin to think about raising the product of rape?" Joey countered.

Ruby swallowed anxiously.

"We have to deal with facts here, Rubes," Joey said gently. "Neither of us like the fact that Robbo forced a pregnancy on me. And neither of us like the fact that Charlie got pregnant by sleeping with Hugo behind my back. But the fact is that we're both pregnant and we have to deal with it."

Ruby nodded and watched the way the girls held onto each other.

"And when it comes to dealing with feelings, Charlie and I love each other," Joey continued. "We want to be together. And that means we have to accept the situation we're in and try to make the best of it."

"Well, you're a better person than me," Ruby admitted. "I don't think I could… I mean, either situation, I…"

She sighed heavily. Charlie took the risk of touching her arm and was relieved when she didn't pull away.

"So I get an extra niece or nephew, hey?" the teenager said brightly, trying to sound positive and enthusiastic about it all. "We might need a bigger house."

Charlie and Joey both laughed softly, agreeing with her.

"We thought about that," the police officer said, taking the lead. "And we're going to start looking for somewhere big enough for the five of us."

"I'll miss Leah and VJ," Ruby admitted.

"We will too," Charlie said. "But we'll still see them all time. And it's not like we _want _to move out. But with the best will in the world, this place just isn't going to be big enough. It's not like a soap opera where rooms magically attach themselves to houses to accommodate random people!"

All three of them chuckled.

"So, we're okay, yeah?" Joey asked. "You're happy?"

"As happy as you two are, I guess," Ruby said uncertainly. "I mean, on the one hand, I think – yay! Babies! And I love both of them instantly because they're yours. But the situation… I think that'll be pretty tricky."

Both women nodded.

"But I think we can get through it all so long as we're together," Ruby decided.

It was exactly what they needed to hear.

The next job was likely to be harder. While there was no way that Robbo would or should ever know that his violence had resulted in a pregnancy, Charlie's night with Hugo had been consensual and he was going to become a father.

* * *

"Are you sure you don't mind coming with me?" Charlie asked when she pulled up outside the home that her one night stand shared with his girlfriend, Martha and brother, Xavier, who also happened to be Ruby's boyfriend.

"Are you sure you don't mind me coming?" Joey countered.

Charlie smiled and sighed all at the same time. She leant over and kissed her.

"So long as you're really willing to be a parent to this child, then I want you involved in every part of this," she said.

Joey smiled against her lips.

"Then let's go for it," she decided.

They climbed out of the car, locked up and knocked on Hugo's door. He answered quickly, obviously very surprised to see them.

"Um… what…?" he faltered.

Martha appeared behind him and reminded him of his manners, prompting him to invite them in. The foursome sat rather awkwardly in the lounge. Joey couldn't help but recall the night she had come to return Hugo's lost phone, the night she had realised that he and Charlie had spent the night together – thanks to a missing earring. She couldn't help but wonder where the bedroom was, where Hugo and Charlie had been together. But she forced herself to shake it out of her. Now wasn't the time.

"We um… have some news," Charlie began awkwardly.

Hugo and Martha both looked concerned.

"Is this a police thing or…?" Martha asked, looking at Joey.

She had no idea what could be so important in their personal lives that they both had to come round.

"I'm pregnant," Charlie blurted out.

Hugo looked momentarily relieved for some reason and then alarm reached his face. Martha when straight to horror.

"What?" Hugo managed.

"I'm pregnant," Charlie repeated. "And you're the father."

Hugo just stared at her.

"We only did it once," he protested.

"Once is all it takes," Joey put in quietly.

"Are you… are you sure?" Hugo asked.

"Very sure," Charlie told him.

"What are you going to do?"

"We're keeping it," Charlie said, reaching for Joey's hand.

She had no idea how she would do this without her. She was relieved to have her by her side.

"And what do want from me?" Hugo asked guardedly.

"Nothing really," Charlie said. "You can be involved if you want and if not, that's fine. Joey and I are making a go of things, we're looking for a place together with Ruby and the babies."

"Babies?" Hugo asked in panic.

"Joey," Martha said quietly, nodding to the young woman's swelling belly.

"You're…?" Hugo struggled.

"Well, I'm not just fat," Joey snapped.

There was no way on earth she would ever like this man.

"Sorry," Hugo said. "I just thought you were…"

"I am," Joey said. "The pregnancy was not consensual."

He looked rather stricken and apologised again.

"So, that's it, really," Charlie said awkwardly, when silence fell between them all. "Now you know. Let us know if you want to be involved or not."

She stood. Joey followed suit.

"Wait," Martha said. "Of course he wants to be involved. It's his child. Right, Hugo?"

He looked uncertain. She looked furious.

"How can you abandon your baby?" Martha demanded.

Charlie winced inwardly, recalling the day she had fled from Ruby's cot, not returning for a whole year. Joey squeezed her hand.

"Look, I just need some time to get my head around this, okay?" Hugo snapped. "It's not exactly how I was expecting my day to turn out."

"We'll leave it with you then," Joey decided, leading Charlie towards the door.

She didn't want to be in the same room as the guy for any longer than she had to.

* * *

Outside, the couple headed to the car and sighed heavily with relief. They held hands again.

"Well, I'm glad that's out of the way," Charlie admitted.

"Me too," Joey said. "Is it wrong to want him not to want to be involved?"

"No," Charlie said. "I understand. It would be a lot easier for us if he wasn't."

"But we can't deny our child a right to their father," Joey added. "Not in your case anyway. In my case, I'd do anything I possibly could to protect her from Robbo."

Charlie nodded, thoroughly agreeing with her.

"Thank you for giving me this chance, Joey," she said. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

Joey leant across and kissed her softly.

"You'll never have to find out," she promised.

* * *

_Next time… Angelo returns while Joey has a problem with her pregnancy…_


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

It was three weeks later and at twelve weeks pregnant, with a twenty week pregnant girlfriend and the discovery of a hand buried in the sand on the beach, Charlie was stressed. She had had her twelve week scan and now that she was past the danger zone, she had started to tell people that she was also pregnant. She'd told Leah ahead of time, considering they lived together but now, most people in the Bay were aware of her situation. She, Joey and Ruby had also been looking for a house to move into.

"Charlie, Area Command are here to see you," Watson said, poking her head around Charlie's office door.

The Senior Constable looked confused.

"Why?" she asked.

Her colleague shrugged. Charlie followed her out into reception.

"Senior Constable Buckton?" the big boss of Area Command asked.

"Yes," Charlie said, shaking his hand as he introduced himself as Oliver Flack.

"I'm sending a team over about the hand in the sand," he told her, getting right to the point.

"No offence, Sir, but my team are perfectly capable of handling this," Charlie replied a little stubbornly. "We're processing evidence as we speak."

"I'm sure you are capable," Oliver agreed. "But we have a lead suggesting that this is connected to a big case we're working on in our department. So, we need you to hand it over. I'll send my team over this afternoon. Please make sure you're here to meet them."

Charlie frowned. She was meant to have the afternoon off in order to attend an appointment with Joey. She was halfway through her pregnancy now and things were becoming more serious. They had a meeting with the midwife to discuss birthing plans and all sorts. There was no way Charlie could miss it.

"I'm not here this afternoon," she told him firmly.

"Then you need to change that, Senior," Oliver said, turning to leave. "The mission is what counts."

* * *

At home, Joey was frustrated. She and Charlie were due to leave for their appointment in half an hour but her girlfriend was late in getting back home. She understood that things were intense at work for Charlie at the moment but she was afraid that she would prioritise it over their life together. Halfway through her pregnancy and extremely hormonal, she couldn't help but fret.

She stopped pacing and sank down onto the sofa, touching her belly. She was very obviously pregnant now and she was starting to get to grips with it all. With Charlie and Ruby's help, she was just about beginning to get excited about the baby. She was starting to be able to look down at her bump and see the life living inside her, relying on her and connecting with her, and not just remember how it got there. She was still terrified that they weren't going to bond or be able to love each other. But she knew she would try her best.

* * *

Charlie was anxiously waiting for the team from Area Command to arrive. She knew she was cutting it fine with getting back home and the last thing either she or Joey needed was to feel stressed. But she also had a commitment to her job and to whoever the poor man was that had had his hand washed up on the beach.

She looked up from where she had been staffing reception when she heard the front door open. Her mouth hung open as she came face to face with Angelo Rosetta.

* * *

"Ow!" Joey squeaked, immediately clutching her tummy.

She'd felt something that she gathered resembled contractions for a good ten minutes. She frowned down at her tummy.

"Do you have to do that?" she asked her unborn baby grumpily.

Her calmness was based in reading about Braxton Hicks contractions in the baby book that morning. Plus, she was going to the hospital anyway and the pain was nowhere near as severe as she expected labour to be. She frowned further at the thought of actually giving birth. She was finding pregnancy difficult enough but the final exam was likely to be horrific.

"It's Braxton Hicks, it's Braxton Hicks, it's Braxton Hicks," she told herself over and over again when the pain came again.

She closed her eyes and clutched her tummy, willing Charlie to come home.

* * *

"What the hell are you doing here?"

They were Charlie's thoughts but they were coming from someone behind her. She turned to find Watson glaring at their former colleague. She reiterated her question.

"I'm here as part of Area Command," Angelo said.

He was in the uniform alright but the scene did not make sense.

"You're meant to be in jail," Charlie managed.

"I was allowed off the charges," Angelo said. "I would have thought you'd been notified."

"Yeah, and we didn't want it be true then either," Watson said bitterly.

How dare the man who had killed their colleague and friend be standing there in front of them? How dare he be allowed to put on a police uniform ever again?

"Well, whatever you want, it is true," Angelo said firmly.

Charlie balked at the lack of apology in his voice as he stood before her, bold as brass, his arms folded across his chest.

"So I'd appreciate it if you put your personal grievances aside and help my team and I work this case," he said.

"Well, why don't we just let you get on with it?" Charlie suggested bitterly. "I've got an elsewhere to be."

Without another word, she marched out of the station.

"She's put on some weight," Angelo remarked.

"She's pregnant, you idiot," Watson snapped. "Don't expect me to work with you. I wish you were dead."

She too marched off. Angelo sighed. He'd known coming back wouldn't be easy but he had hoped that at least Charlie would have given him a chance. But no, she'd run off with the first man she could find and he'd knocked her up. So much for being welcomed home.

* * *

"Sweetheart, I'm so sorry I'm late!" Charlie called, marching through the house and into the lounge.

All horrified thoughts of Angelo dissipated when she saw her girlfriend clutching her bump in pain and wincing.

"Joey!" she yelped, hurrying forward and kneeling at her girlfriend's side. "What's wrong?"

"It's…"

"Please tell me it's terrible wind!" Charlie begged.

Joey snorted with laughter, distracted from pain immediately. Charlie grinned and blushed, having not quite meant to say what she had.

"I think it's Braxton Hicks," Joey explained. "But we should get a move on anyway. The midwife can check me out when we get there. And once the pain's gone away, please remind me to scold you for being late."

Charlie helped her up and they headed out of the house together.

"I promise I have a good excuse," Charlie said.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and Joey find out the gender of one of their babies…_


	17. Chapter 17

_For Blue1927. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Seventeen**

"Wait, so Angelo is back on the police force? The Angelo that murdered your colleague?" Joey asked incredulously.

She was lying on a hospital bed, having told reception about the possible Braxton Hicks contractions. Not wanting to take any chances, they had decided she needed to be checked out before her appointment and they were now waiting for the midwife to arrive.

"Yep," Charlie said grimly.

She still couldn't quite believe it was true.

"I just don't understand how the police force could dare to let him wear a uniform again," the cop said bitterly. "And even more than that, I can't believe the bastard would have the audacity to put it on and return to the place where Jack's wife, his father, his friends are. I mean, how on earth are Martha and Tony ever supposed to pick up the pieces and start again?"

Joey shook her head, unable to come up with and answer. She held her girlfriend's hand and just hoped she wouldn't find it too difficult to work with the man.

They both looked up when their midwife, Judy Soothers entered the room. They had both chuckled at her name, thinking it rather apt for a 'soother' to be present when one was giving birth.

"Hi, Joey, is it?" the kindly looking woman asked.

She looked to be in her forties and had her hair tied back behind her. She smiled at them both and didn't seem to bat an eyelid at the fact that they were holding hands.

"I'm Judy," the woman said.

The girls broke apart to shake her hand.

"And this is your partner, is it?" Judy asked.

"Yes, I'm Charlie Buckton."

Judy smiled and began sorting out the ultrasound machine so that she could take a look at the baby and check that Joey's pain levels weren't anything to worry about.

"Actually, Charlie's expecting too," Joey ventured, as she and Charlie had agreed. "And we were both hoping for the same midwife."

"Wow, planning quite the family!" Judy remarked, moving to feel Joey's tummy.

"Well, we don't like to do things by halves," Joey giggled.

She and Charlie had agreed that nobody needed to know about the rape or about Charlie's one night stand. As far as anyone who wasn't already aware was concerned, they had planned a family and that was exactly the way they wanted it.

"Good for you," Judy said. "And yes, I'd happily take you on as a patient, Charlie. I think it'd be good for continuity of care."

"Thank you," Joey said.

"Now, about these contractions you're having…" Judy said.

"Is it too early for Braxton Hicks?" Joey asked a little worriedly. "I read it was meant to be twenty one weeks and I'm only twenty."

"It's a little early but I'm sure everything's fine," Judy said. "You haven't bled or had your waters break or anything?"

"Believe me, you'd know about it if I had," Joey grinned.

Both Charlie and Judy grinned back at her.

"Glad to hear it," Judy said, moving the ultrasound machine closer.

She blobbed some gel onto Joey's round tummy and both Charlie and Joey waited with baited breath to learn how their child was. It was also at the forefront of their minds that today, they might learn the gender of their baby.

"Everything looks fine to me," Judy told them. "Now, this is your twenty week scan so…"

"Yes, please!" Charlie and Joey said so eagerly that she didn't even need to finish her question.

"Well, if we can convince Baby to turn just a little…"

She wiggled the instrument detecting the baby.

"You have got a baby girl."

"Thank God," Joey said, flopping back against the pillow in relief.

Charlie caught hold of her hand. Judy looked surprised. She had known people to want one gender more than the other but this seemed like something else. She watched as the two women exchanged glances and nodded each other.

"The baby wasn't planned," Joey admitted awkwardly. "I was…"

She looked anxiously at Charlie.

"Joey was raped," her partner explained carefully.

Judy nodded, keeping position so that the image of the baby would stay there.

"I'm pretty terrified of having her," Joey admitted. "And I don't think I'd be coping at all if it wasn't for Charlie. But I think I'll cope that little bit better if it's a girl. I'm afraid of… seeing him."

"I'm so sorry," Judy said sincerely.

She looked at Charlie curiously.

"Mine was an error of judgement I made one night," the police officer admitted. "But Joey and I are really intent on making this work, being a family."

Judy smiled at both of them, admiring their courage.

"Then I'll be here to support you both right up until your baby girl and whatever this little one is come into the world."

* * *

Charlie and Joey left their appointment feeling pleased with the productivity of the afternoon. Judy was due to be midwife to both of them and they now had a birth plan for Joey and could come back at the right time to come up with one for Charlie. Joey had made a few jokes about giving birth at sea but really, she was happy with the hospital. And any pain relief she could get, having heard a lot of horror stories, was welcome. Charlie was going to be her birth partner and they hoped the roles would be reversed when the time came.

"Do you have to go back to work this afternoon?" Joey asked, plonking herself in the passenger seat of Charlie's car.

"Well, I probably should," Charlie said.

Joey frowned.

"But I won't," Charlie concluded. "You're still having twinges. I think I need to stay home and look after you."

Joey grinned at her, leaning over and stealing a quick kiss.

"You're the best," she told her.

* * *

_Next time… Joey has a pregnancy panic and Charlie argues with Angelo…_


	18. Chapter 18

_I'm struggling to do two updates a day at the moment so I think for the time being, I'll have to go back to just one. I don't have as much time to write just now so I'm struggling to keep up with chapters and stuff but hopefully in the New Year we'll be back to normal. So today will be my last double update for now. I hope you enjoy it. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Eighteen**

It hadn't been the easiest few weeks in the world, not now that Angelo was back in town and very much making his presence felt. Personally, Charlie hadn't quite worked him out yet. On the one hand, he seemed genuinely remorseful over what he had done. And he was certainly a very different to the man she had once known and, to her shame, briefly dated. He was yet more confirmation that she was extremely lucky to be loved and in love with Joey.

But on the other hand, he had been behaving like a bulldozer. Since his return to the Bay, prompted by VJ finding a hand in the sand, Area Command had swamped Charlie's police station. Irene Roberts had been found drunk and disorderly and in a complete state on the yacht she and her boyfriend, Lou DeBono had sailed off in. She had been frightened and lost and in a state of panic, she had shot one of the team that had come to rescue her. He was now pressing charges against her for his injuries, which had fortunately not been fatal. Now Irene was suffering in jail and everyone blamed Angelo for putting her there, on top of everything that had happened with tragic Jack Holden.

Arriving home from work, Charlie was relieved. It had been a long day and although most of her early pregnancy tiredness and sickness was over, she was struggling with a bit of heartburn and very aware that her job was a dangerous one for someone in her condition. She was being as sensible as possible and keeping safe but as a police officer, one never knew what would come up.

"Honey, I'm home!" she called out.

It was her usual greeting and had become part of their routine. Joey had got herself a job behind the bar of the Surf Club in the mornings and was relieved to be able to contribute financially now, especially as she, Charlie and Ruby were still looking for their new place. But it worked out nicely that she was the domesticated one who looked after the house and welcomed Charlie home from work in the evenings.

"Honey?" Charlie called when she didn't get her usual response.

She frowned when she heard the distinct sound of sobbing and promptly flung her bag on the floor and hurried through to the lounge where she found her girlfriend curled up on the sofa.

"Joey, what's wrong?" Charlie fretted, immediately gathering her into her arms.

"Everyone just keeps invading my space," Joey complained tearfully.

Charlie immediately began to withdraw but Joey clung on.

"Not you," she assured her. "Just…"

She gestured to her belly, which was very definitely pregnant now.

"I didn't realise that as soon as you're pregnant, you're belly becomes the property of the whole fucking world," Joey said. "Everyone's touching my stomach without permission, people I don't even know. And everyone assumes that I'm so fucking happy about being like this!"

She wept harder. Charlie held her tighter and kissed the top of her head.

"And I am happy," Joey sobbed. "I am. And I'm not. And I… I'm so confused, Charlie. I'm twenty three weeks. I should be completely happy by now. I should be ready."

"There are no rules about when you should be ready, Joey," Charlie assured her, keeping her voice gentle and quiet.

It was a conversation they had had many times. Especially recently, Joey's mood was up and down and it was hard to keep up sometimes but there was no way that Charlie would give up trying. And she was more than understanding of what her girlfriend was going through. She had been there herself, after all.

"I'm over half way," Joey said, her voice sounding heartbroken. "I should be ready."

"Joey, there are no rules for pregnancy, especially not in the circumstances," Charlie said. "I mean, our situation is pretty specific. For both of us. Together. But even if you're not ready now, even if you're not ready until the baby's born or even after… you'll get there. And I'll be with you every step of the way."

Joey managed a smile and held onto her.

"And if anyone touches your bump without permission, you can punch them," Charlie permitted. "Pregnant woman's prerogative!"

Joey burst out laughing, marvelling at the way Charlie always knew how to make her feel better.

* * *

Charlie grabbed a sandwich and headed back to her car. She had some paperwork to finish back at the station and then she was due to be attending her first aquanatal class with Joey. Her partner had been attending for a while now but at fifteen weeks, the baby app on her phone had started nagging her, as it was meant to be good for both her and the baby. Plus, Joey said it was fun and it was another thing they could enjoy doing together.

"Charlie!" a familiar voice called.

Charlie froze at the accidental father of her child approached her, looking stressed. She still wasn't exactly clear on how involved he was going to be in the child's life but at this point, she didn't much care. It was a sad fact that lots of kids grew up without fathers and if this was the case for her son or daughter then Charlie knew that he or she would not miss out on anything. The baby would have her and Joey, plus Ruby and the rest of the family. They would never go without a thing, especially not love.

"How's… um, how's everything going?" he asked, nodding at her small but growing bump.

"Yeah," she said unconsciously touching it. "Everything's good. We're 10cms long and 50g."

He smiled but looked bewildered.

"I was after a favour," he admitted, revealing that he had no real interest in how long or heavy his baby really was.

"What?" she asked a little abruptly.

"Angelo will not stop hassling me," he said. "Everywhere I turn, there he is. He's always accusing me of something. And I can't get him to stop. Can you do something?"

Charlie shrugged.

"He works for Area Command," she said. "His cases are nothing to do with me."

"I'm asking as a friend," Hugo said.

"We're not friends, Hugo."

"Come on, Charlie, you can't get more connected than you and I are right now," he protested.

"How many times have I seen you since I told you I was pregnant?" she asked. "How much have you actually been interested?"

"Well…"

"You're a sperm donor," she informed him. "A sperm donor who may or may not step up and be a Dad at some point. I'll talk to Angelo as a favour but I am not promising anything, Hugo. And I don't owe you anything either."

She walked away.

* * *

Back at work, Charlie took Angelo to one side so they could talk privately.

"I've had a complaint about you," she said, getting right to the point.

Her one time lover, something she deeply regretted, seemed to be settling just a little bit better into Summer Bay, although she knew things still weren't easy for him. He had scored some points by working so hard to get Irene out of jail. She was still in trouble for shooting the police officer but he had almost managed to prove that she had not murdered Lou, who was still missing. Even Tony, Jack's father, seemed to be warming to Angelo and trying to make an effort with him, which had shocked everybody.

"From who?" he asked.

"Hugo," she replied.

Angelo folded his arms across his chest, his lips forming a thin, grim line.

"I was wondering how long it'd take," he remarked.

"Well, I gather you've been hassling him," Charlie said. "Accusing him of things you can't even prove."

"Well, I would have thought he'd deal with it instead of hiding behind his girlfriend," Angelo replied, pulling a face.

"Excuse me?"

"Seriously, Charlie, how can you been hooking up with someone like _him_?" he said.

It was a question he had obviously wanted to ask for a while.

"Hugo and I aren't together," she told him. "Not that it's got anything to do with you anyway."

"You're knocked up with his brat, aren't you?" Angelo asked rather nastily.

"Back off," Charlie warned. "And don't you ever talk about my baby that way again."

"Sorry," Angelo said, genuinely stepping back and dropping his arms. "I just don't understand how you can be with him."

"For the hundredth time, I'm not with him!" Charlie exclaimed.

"Then how are you pregnant?" Angelo asked.

"One night," Charlie said. "One mistake that I nearly lived to regret. I got pregnant. But Hugo's with Martha and I'm with Joey."

Angelo furrowed his brow. His momentary joy at Charlie not being with Hugo was dampened by news of this other guy. One of the very few things that had kept him going while he had been languishing in jail was that he might have a chance with Charlie again when he was free. She had been the only person to ever truly believe in him.

"I've not seen you with any guy," he said.

"That's because she's a girl," Charlie replied.

Angelo's mouth hung open as he stared at her.

"Excuse me?" he finally managed. "Are you saying you're a lesbian now or something?"

"I'm in a relationship with a woman," Charlie confirmed, not willing to be swayed by labels.

"Hang on, is she the fat one I've seen you with?"

Charlie clenched her jaw and resisted the urge to punch him.

"Are you actually the stupidest person on the planet?" she snapped.

"What?"

"She's pregnant too," she informed him.

"Not Hugo's?" he asked, horrified.

"Not any of your business!"

"So wait, you're hooking up with some pregnant chick and you're pregnant too? Two babies are coming into the world and between them they have six parents?"

"I'm in a serious and committed relationship with a beautiful and wonderful woman," Charlie corrected. "Two babies are coming into the world. One baby has most probably got four parents but most definitely got two. And one has two parents only. Again, not that any of this has anything to do with you."

"This is insane," Angelo said.

"It's complicated," Charlie agreed. "But it works for us."

He remained unconvinced.

"And anyway, I didn't call you in here to talk about this, I called you in to ask you to lay off Hugo unless you have something legitimate against him," Charlie said. "The very last thing you need right now is a formal complaint against you. Don't you think you have enough problems?"

* * *

Later, Charlie was relieved to finish work and collect Joey in order to go to their aquanatal class.

"Hey, sweetheart," Joey greeted, once she'd settled herself into the car. "How was your day?"

She leant in and kissed her.

"Busy," Charlie said. "Complicated."

"How so?"

Charlie sighed.

"I'll bore you with it later," she decided. "Right now, I'm looking forward to bouncing around in a swimming pool and then taking you out for a nice meal. Sound good?"

"Sounds perfect," Joey grinned.

She kissed her one more time for good measure before allowing her to drive off.

* * *

_Next time… Joey thinks she's found the perfect place to live…_


	19. Chapter 19

_Merry Christmas everyone! Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Nineteen**

"Charlie!" Joey shrieked. "Charlie!"

In a panic, the police officer raced back into the lounge from the kitchen.

"What? What is it? What's wrong?" she squeaked back. "Is it the baby? You're not in labour? It's too early! You're only twenty five weeks! Oh God, what should we do?"

"Charlie," Joey interjected, feeling bad about frightening her. "I'm not in labour."

Charlie halted and surveyed the scene. Realising that her girlfriend was looking rather relaxed on the couch with the newspaper, she felt rather foolish to have assumed there was something terribly wrong.

"Sorry," she said, coming to sit beside her.

"No, I'm sorry," Joey said, catching hold of her hand. "I didn't mean to freak you out."

They kissed tenderly.

"So, what's so exciting in the paper?" Charlie wondered.

"I've found the perfect house," Joey announced.

She shifted to show her the newspaper, upon which she had circled a five bedroom house for moderate rent and very local.

"Wow," she remarked. "That does look good."

"It's perfect, Charlie," she said. "It's so beautiful and it has a huge garden for the kids to play in and views…"

She swooned a little and then blushed.

"The only thing is that it's on my old street," she revealed. "Like, directly opposite the house I used to live in. The one Brett _still _lives in."

"Oh," Charlie said a little glumly. "How do you feel about that?"

"Not great," Joey admitted. "But I can't even tell you how many times I gazed out of my bedroom window at that house, longing to live there. I dreamed of how I'd arrange the furniture and I'd be working down at the docks, popping back for my lunch in the awesome kitchen. The lady that lived there when I was a kid was friends with Mum so I used to visit a lot and… oh, Charlie, it's so amazing in there. Please can we look?"

Charlie leant over and kissed her.

"Of course we can."

They were interrupted by Joey's baby kicking merrily. Joey giggled and put Charlie's hand on her belly so that she could feel the movement.

"I can't wait until this little one starts kicking and stuff," Charlie said, keeping one hand on Joey's tummy and touching her own with the other.

Joey smiled and snuggled up against her. The whole thing might have taken a long time for them both to get their heads around and they still had a long way to go but she was so happy with the little family and the life they were building for themselves.

* * *

The following afternoon, having picked Ruby up from school, Charlie and Joey headed down to the docks to view their potential new home. Both Buckton girls were amused at just how excited Joey was. Even the idea of living opposite her brother, a man she had avoided since he return to the Bay, couldn't dampen her spirits over living in a home she had dreamed of since she was a kid.

"Okay, the picture did not do this place justice," Ruby admitted, peering at the house from the backseat.

"Kind of stands out in this area, hey?" Joey remarked.

They spotted the estate agent hovering outside the building and clambered out of the car to meet him. All three of them noted his barely concealed surprise at being met by two women, both of whom were very obviously pregnant now. Charlie was seventeen weeks and Joey was twenty five weeks. The three of them spent many an evening talking to the babies and getting ready to welcome them into their family.

"Hi," the young man said, sounding a little nervous. "Which one of you is… Joey?"

"I am," Joey said, stepping forward and shaking his hand. "This is my partner, Charlie and this is Charlie's sister, Ruby."

So far, Charlie had remained quiet about Ruby's real origins in this world. She and Joey still talked about it all at length in the privacy of their bedroom but they hadn't reached any conclusions over whether she should know the truth or not.

On the one hand, there was the old saying that honesty was the best policy. And it was a different experience to welcome a brother or sister into the world than it was to welcome a niece or a nephew. But at the same time, was it right to upset the applecart? Was there a need for her to know when she was quite happy believing that Ross was her father and Charlie was her sister? Neither Charlie not Joey could figure out the right answer.

"Pleased to meet you," the sandy haired man said. "Shall we go inside?"

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Joey was more in love with the place than ever. She had picked out which room she and Charlie should have with a baby's room on either side. Ruby was pleased, considering it left her with the second largest bedroom and her own en suite.

The downstairs was spacious, the kitchen as impressive as Joey had described and the garden was huge.

"I can't believe it's such little rent though," Charlie remarked. "Is it because of the area?"

The estate agent paused. For a moment, Charlie was terrified she had come across as a snob.

Finally the man said, "Rent?"

Charlie and Joey both nodded.

"I'm sorry, ladies," he said, shaking his head and looking rather irritated at having had his time wasted, "but this place is for sale, not rent. I think you've got your wires crossed."

Joey looked torn between distress and indignation.

"This place was definitely advertised as a rental," she said hotly.

"I'm the estate agent," he said, irritating them all with his patronising tone. "I think I should know."

"We can read a paper," Charlie snapped, digging it out of her handbag and thrusting it at him.

He read it, frowned and then apologised.

"The listing is wrong," he said. "I'm sorry. The owners are moving away and want to sell. They don't want to let. I'll get onto the paper immediately to pull the ad so we can change it. I truly am sorry. I get the impression that you really liked this place."

"We loved it," Joey said glumly.

Charlie and Ruby followed as she trudged back out into the street.

* * *

That evening, Joey's bubbly mood had very much dissipated. She felt low and disappointed, like someone had waved something wonderful in front of her and then snatched it cruelly away.

"We'll find somewhere else, Jo," Charlie promised.

"But I wanted _that _place," Joey complained, leaning against her on the sofa.

"I know," Charlie said softly. "But if we can't live there then we'll find somewhere better. Everything will work out just fine."

Joey smiled and cuddled up to her. Charlie kissed her temple and sipped her tea, smiling to herself as she struck upon what she hoped was a brilliant idea.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie's plan goes haywire…_


	20. Chapter 20

_Sorry for the lack of update yesterday. We had a big family day on Friday and I was so tired yesterday that I couldn't even turn the laptop on! I won't be updating tomorrow or the next day but I'll update again on 2__nd__ January. Now, this story seems to have accidentally taken a similar turn to 'What If' at the same time but the stories will go quite differently. Sorry about that! And Happy New Year! Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Twenty**

"Charlie, what is going on?" Joey wondered. "Why are we back here?"

It had been five days and Joey was still very disappointed at not getting the house she wanted. Not even her recent antenatal appointment had boosted her mood to her usual level of pep. She was glad to know that everything was fine, having had everything with both herself and the baby checked, but she was becoming fretful about the future and not having a place to live big enough for herself, Charlie, Ruby and the two babies due to be hurtling into the world sooner rather than later. She was twenty five weeks gone now and Charlie was seventeen. Time was ticking away.

"It's a surprise," Charlie said, pulling the car over to the side of the road outside the house that Joey had fallen in love with.

"Are you showing me what we could have won?" Joey asked rather sourly.

Charlie chuckled and climbed out of the car. She moved round to the other side in order to open Joey's door. She stepped back just at the wrong moment. Another car hurtled round the corner and knocked her down.

Joey lurched out of the car immediately. She felt like she was watching the scene from a distance and in some sort of strange slow motion as she screamed Charlie's name and tried to make sure she was okay.

She fumbled in her pocket for her phone, dialling quickly for an ambulance and giving the details in a panic.

"She just stepped out!" an anxious voice announced.

Joey looked up and was shocked to come face to face with her brother, Brett.

* * *

Inside the house, Ruby and Leah were alerted by the sound of Joey's screams.

"They don't sound like happy noises…" Leah ventured.

The two women raced out of the house, both horrified to find Charlie barely conscious in the road with Joey kneeling beside her. Brett was pacing, his head bleeding as he ranted about people not looking where they were going or paying attention to what they were doing.

"Charlie, Charlie, please…" Joey begged.

She held her girlfriend's hand and rested her other one on her tummy. Suddenly the baby that she'd nearly agreed to let Charlie get rid of was one of the two most important things in the world and she was terrified of it being in danger.

"Charlie!" Ruby also begged.

She took the police officer's free hand and also touched her neatly rounded tummy.

"Charlie, please be okay."

"What the hell was she thinking?" Brett demanded.

He stepped towards them. Leah firmly got in his way.

"You need to back off," she warned. "Whoever's fault it was, you've just hit a pregnant woman with your car. That's the priority. So why don't you fuck off over there?"

Ruby raised her eyebrows in surprise at the housemate's aggression. Brett stared at Leah.

"Pregnant?" he remarked.

Joey turned her head to glare at him.

"Yes, she's pregnant and so am I," she snapped. "Now, do what Leah says and fuck off!"

Everyone was relieved to hear sirens in the background.

* * *

At the hospital, Joey was frantic, as were Ruby and Leah. Ruby had phoned Ross and Morag, knowing they would want to be there with Charlie in critical condition.

"Joey, please come and sit down," Leah begged.

"I can't," Joey said, close to tears, as she continued to pace the small hospital corridor.

"Joey, you need to be as calm as possible for the baby," Leah said as gently as possible.

Joey whirled around to face her.

"How the fuck can I be calm in this situation?" she demanded angrily.

"Joey…" Leah said delicately.

"Sorry," Joey apologised.

She promptly burst into tears. Leah leapt up and gathered her housemate into her arms. Joey continued to weep as Ruby joined the hug.

"She'll be okay," the teenager insisted.

"Can I get that in writing?" Joey requested, laughing sadly.

"Come on, Joey," Ruby said. "It's Charlie. She's always okay. She got sucked through a storm drain last year and spat out to sea and she was _still _okay! And now… now I know for absolute sure."

"Now?"

"Now she has you," Ruby said. "You and the babies. She's got more to live for than ever."

Joey managed a smile. The three of them sat down in a line.

"I just hope the baby will be okay too," Joey sighed.

She caught hold of Ruby's hand and squeezed it, knowing that the teenager was suffering as much as she was.

"He'll be a little fighter like his Mum," Ruby said certainly.

"He?" Leah asked.

"Well, Joey's having a girl so I reckon Charlie will be having a boy," Ruby explained.

The other two laughed.

"Now, that's good baby logic," Joey grinned.

"I wonder what will happen to Brett," Ruby mused.

"I don't give a shit," Joey remarked.

"Not at all?" Leah wondered.

Joey shook her head. There was a reason she hadn't been in touch with him since she'd returned to the Bay. She held him responsible for a lot of bad things and she wanted as little to do with him as possible.

"You guys are my family now," she said. "Not him."

"Even if this was an accident?" Ruby asked.

"Even if," Joey said.

"Do you even know what happened?" Leah asked. "I mean, didn't she see the car or…?"

"I don't even know what we were doing on that street!" Joey exclaimed. "And for that matter, where did you guys pop up from?"

Leah and Ruby looked awkward.

"Seriously," Joey said. "What's going on?"

"We'll leave it to Charlie to wake up and tell you," Ruby decided. "It was her surprise."

* * *

Two hours later, Charlie was out of surgery but hadn't yet woken up from her operation. Joey sat on one side of her bed and Ruby sat on the other. Each had a hold of her hand and they were waiting for Ross and Morag to arrive, although that in itself was going to be a fairly tricky business. Neither of them knew about Joey and they certainly didn't know that both she and Charlie were pregnant. Everything was going to take a hell of a lot of explaining.

"They've called Judy to double check everything but they said that the baby's fine," Joey told her unconscious girlfriend. "And it looks like you'll need some time off work and everything but I know we'll get through all of this, Charlie. Together. As a family."

She looked at Ruby, who nodded.

"All you have to do is wake up and everything will be okay," she told the woman she thought of as a sister. "And you _have _to wake up, Charlie, because Joey and I are _not _explaining all of this to Dad and Morag by ourselves."

"Explaining what to Dad and Morag?" said a voice behind them.

Joey and Ruby both jumped in fright as the people they'd only just been discussing entered the room.

"Hi," Ruby said.

She left Charlie's side to hug them both, giving her Dad an extra squeeze.

"How is she?" Ross asked worriedly, looking over at his daughter, sleeping quietly in the bed and looking so small and fragile.

"She's going to be okay," Ruby said. "But she had some fractures and stuff."

"And who's this?" Morag asked, looking pointedly at Joey, who stood up anxiously.

This wasn't quite the way she'd wanted to meet her in laws.

"I'm Joey Collins," she said, extending her hand.

Morag and Ross politely shook it.

"I recognise your name," Ross said, struggling to place it.

"You were the victim in a case Charlie was working on a few months ago," Morag recalled. "She took you in as a friend?"

"Yes," Joey said, wondering how to explain. "She was very kind."

She looked at Ruby who nodded her encouragement.

"I um… well, I didn't… this isn't… um…"

"Charlie and Joey are in a relationship with each other," Ruby said helpfully.

Ross and Morag both looked startled. They were interrupted by Charlie beginning to stir.

* * *

_Next time… Ross and Morag find out everything they've missed and Charlie's world begins to implode…_


	21. Chapter 21

_Sorry this chapter is a bit late – I seem to spend my life at the vet's at the moment. One of the guinea pigs has a bloody nose, thanks to one of the others deciding it looked edible! But I remain confident that at some point, I am going to have a day where there is no pet related problem! But anyway, on with the chapter… Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Twenty One**

"Charlie, you're okay!" Joey assured her girlfriend quickly, as she began to fret in her hospital bed.

A ramble of panic came tumbling out of Charlie's mouth as she worried about Joey and the babies and wondered where she was and why she was in so much pain.

"The baby?" Charlie asked, beads of perspiration appearing on her brow.

She touched her tummy, her heart racing as she feared for her child's life.

"The baby's fine," Joey promised. "Judy's coming down to do a proper scan but they did one quickly while you were asleep and Ruby and I both heard the heartbeat and everything. Didn't we, Rubes?"

The teenager stepped up on Charlie's other side and backed Joey up.

"Excuse me?" Morag said. "What baby?"

Everyone turned to her and Morag, having temporarily forgotten that they were there. Charlie, Joey and Ruby exchanged awkward glances.

"I think you'd better sit down," Ruby finally said.

She moved to pull up two chairs so that her father and stepmother could join her and Joey around Charlie's bedside.

"Okay, um… well, the thing is, that I'm pregnant," Charlie told them.

"Well, we worked that bit out," Morag remarked.

Charlie wasn't sure how to take the comment until she spotted a wry grin on her stepmother's face. She managed a self-conscious laugh.

"I'm seventeen weeks gone," she said.

"It's that boy again, isn't it?" Ross snapped, making them all jump.

He leapt to his feet.

"I'll kill him! I'll kill him like I should have before!"

Charlie looked stricken.

"Dad!" she said quickly. "Dad! It's okay! Everything's fine! I'm happy about the baby!"

Panic surged within her and she gripped Joey's hand as the truth about Ruby's conception threatened to spill out. With everyone staring at him, Ross caught himself. He stopped pacing and whispered to himself exactly where and when he was. Taking several breaths, he let reason win out and sat back down.

"What was that about?" Ruby wanted to know.

"Nothing, love," Ross said, hoping she wouldn't press him. "I just got confused."

He looked apologetically at Charlie.

"So, you're pregnant?" he asked. "And you're happy?"

"Yes," Charlie said.

"Who's the father?" Morag wanted to know.

"Hugo Austin," Charlie explained.

"Martha's boyfriend?" Morag exclaimed.

Charlie winced and quietly explained that he hadn't been with Martha at the time. She was comforted when Joey squeezed her hand, reassuring her that it no longer mattered that she had been _her _girlfriend at the time.

"And you're raising the baby alone or with him or…?" Ross asked.

"Joey and I raising the baby together," Charlie revealed.

She looked lovingly at her girlfriend, who looked anxious. This wasn't exactly how she had hoped to meet Charlie's family. She hadn't really had the time to find a way to impress them and she was worried she wouldn't cut it.

"Well, babies actually," Charlie added. "Plural."

"Yes, I see you're…" Morag said, nodding to Joey's bump.

"I'm twenty five weeks," Joey said.

"Not Hugo's too?" Morag asked.

"No!" Joey said. "Definitely not."

"Then who…?"

"It doesn't matter," Charlie said quickly. "He'll never be in the baby's life."

"But…"

"It doesn't matter," Charlie snapped.

Morag looked offended.

"Charlie, it's okay," Joey said softly. "They're your family."

"Joey, you don't have to…"

Joey faced Ross and Morag both.

"I was raped a few months ago," she explained awkwardly. "And I got pregnant. I don't have any idea where I'd be without Charlie… or Ruby either, for that matter, but we're an odd but happy little family now."

She smiled and was relieved when Ross and Morag both smiled back at her.

"Thank you for your honesty, Joey," Morag said sincerely. "We appreciate it."

"But are you really together?" Ross asked, looking bewildered. "I didn't… I mean, Charlie, since when…?"

"It wasn't something either of us were looking for," Charlie explained. "I mean, Joey already identified as gay but it never occurred to me that I could be attracted to a woman. But we just… fell in love."

They smiled lovingly at each other. Even Ross and Morag could see it was real.

"Well then, we're happy for you," Ross said. "And we look forward to meeting our grandchildren."

Joey giggled and announced that the baby was giving some well-timed kicks if anyone wanted to feel. Everybody did.

* * *

Half an hour later, everyone seemed to have a clearer picture of what had happened. Charlie barely remembered the accident at all but she gathered she'd been run over by Brett when she'd been helping Joey out of the car. She remained tight lipped over what she had been bringing Joey to the house for in the first place, as did Ruby.

"What's happened to Brett?" she wanted to know.

"I couldn't care less," Joey said bitterly.

"Who did you say Brett was?" Ross asked.

He knew he'd been told but today had filled his head with far too much new information and everything was terribly confusing. He felt like he was starting to get lost and he was trying hard to hold onto everything he knew.

"Brett is my brother," Joey explained patiently.

"But you couldn't care less as to what happens to him?" Ross asked.

"We don't get along," Joey explained. "He doesn't accept me or my relationship with Charlie."

Ross nodded thoughtfully. The knowledge that his daughter was in a lesbian relationship was still a shock. But he liked Joey. She was kind and funny and seemed ever so sweet natured. And he had certainly never seen Charlie as happy as she seemed right now, which was remarkable considering she was in a hospital bed.

They were interrupted by the arrival of a Doctor.

"Ah, I see you have your family here," the young man said brightly. "Charlotte Buckton, is it?"

Charlie nodded from where she was propped up in her bed.

"Charlie," she added.

"Pleased to meet you, Charlie," he said. "I'm Doctor McQueen and I've come down from maternity."

"Where's Judy?" Joey wondered.

"She's off delivering a baby in emergency circumstances," Doctor McQueen explained. "She sends her apologies but you're stuck with me. Now, I gather you were hit by a car this afternoon."

"I gather that too," Charlie replied. "I don't really remember that much of it."

"It sounds horrible!" he said. "Has another Doctor been in to deal with your injuries?"

"Yes," Charlie said. "Doctor Walker has been in. I had to have surgery on my hip. It was fractured."

Doctor McQueen nodded thoughtfully and consulted his notes.

"Now, I'm going to give you an ultrasound to make sure that everything is alright with Baby Buckton, although I gather they did a preliminary one before I got here," he said.

"That's right," Joey said, aware that Charlie hadn't been conscious at the time.

Doctor McQueen busied himself with setting up the machine.

"So, who's everyone here?" he enquired.

"This is my partner, Joey," Charlie introduced. "My sister, my Dad and my step-mum."

"Pleasure to meet you all," the Doctor said. "No Dad?"

"Did anyone call him?" Charlie asked.

"Sorry," Joey apologised. "I didn't actually think of it."

"I can ring him," Ruby offered, standing up.

Charlie touched her hand and told her to wait until the scan was done. She didn't want her to miss out on an extra chance to see the baby.

"Now, have you discussed birthing options with Judy?" Doctor McQueen asked, setting the machine up and approaching the bed.

"Um, well, we're just coming to the hospital," Charlie said, looking confusedly at Joey.

"I mean, have you discussed a caesarean?" the Doctor replied bluntly.

"No," Charlie said anxiously. "I wasn't planning on having one."

The Doctor stopped abruptly.

"Charlie, excuse me for saying but I think it's going to be necessary," he said.

"Because of her hip?" Ruby asked.

"Well, yes, now especially," he agreed. "The car did a lot of damage but your pelvis is abnormally small, which is why you needed one with your first baby. With you having her so young, your body didn't have time to develop properly so the chances of you safely delivering a child now the natural way are pretty minimal."

Charlie's heart sank into her bowel, as did Joey's and Ross's. Morag and Ruby just stared at him.

"I've never had a child," Charlie managed.

She felt like her world was imploding in slow but damaging motion.

"Of course you have," Doctor McQueen said, oblivious to the destruction he was causing.

"No, I haven't," Charlie replied through gritted teeth.

"I take pride in thoroughly examining the notes of all my patients and I know full well that you gave birth to a daughter sixteen years ago," he said. "I even know her name was Ruby."

"Would you shut your fucking mouth?" Ross exploded, leaping to his feet.

"Dad!" Charlie cried, when it looked like her father was going to punch him.

The Doctor leapt back, looking shocked. Having heard the commotion, Sid burst into the room.

"What on earth is going on here?" he demanded.

"This idiot has no concept of patient confidentiality," Joey informed him.

"I think you should leave," Ross warned Doctor McQueen.

He nodded and allowed Sid to bustle him out of the room.

"I'm really sorry," Sid said.

He left with the other Doctor, leaving the family alone together.

"Does someone want to tell me what the hell actually just happened?" Ruby said.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and her family try to process what has happened and Joey learns why they were at the house at the time of the accident…_


	22. Chapter 22

_Just to say, I know a lot of people have been requesting extra updates of things, especially 'Rebellion'. I'm not ignoring you or anything, I am just a bit behind and struggling with time and keeping up and stuff at the moment so I'm not quite able to provide. But if you still want them when I can provide, I'm sure we can work something out! The only stories I have a sufficient backlog of chapters for are 'A Different Way' and 'Dear Diary' at the moment. Thank you for your patience. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Twenty Two**

The silence in the room was utterly deafening as everyone stared at each other. Charlie wanted the bed to swallow her whole. The one secret she had never wanted to be revealed had suddenly been vomited all over all of them by some jumped up Doctor who thought he knew it all. And now… everyone did.

"Charlie, I need you to open your mouth and speak to me," Ruby demanded, standing up and getting into her vision.

The police officer looked startled and searched desperately for Joey. Realising she needed her, Joey stepped closer and took her hand.

"Ruby…"

"You have a sixteen year old daughter called Ruby?" the teenager snapped. "That's a pretty freaky coincidence, isn't it?"

Charlie was struck by the hope in her voice.

"Ruby, I'm really sorry…" Charlie tried.

"Tell me that that dipshit of a Doctor made a mistake," Ruby yelled, her voice high pitched.

Charlie lost her voice.

"Darling, this whole thing is very complicated and emotional…" Ross tried.

Ruby turned on him.

"Tell me that Charlie is my sister and _not _my mother like that idiot was insinuating," she said.

He faltered and took a step back. Nobody knew what to say.

"I take it you knew," Ruby accused, glaring at Joey.

"If you stop yelling then I'm sure Charlie will explain and…"

"You all disgust me," Ruby stated.

She ran from the room.

"Can someone please explain to _me _what's going on here if you won't explain it to that poor child?"

Charlie sighed heavily and sank back against her pillows. Too many things had happened today. She felt like she couldn't breathe.

"Ruby is Charlie's biologically daughter," Joey explained awkwardly, wanting to protect her girlfriend as far as she could. "But Ross adopted her and raised her as his daughter instead because Charlie was so young and so broken at the time."

"Well, teenage pregnancy can happen to the best of us," Morag said quietly, suddenly awash with memories of the daughter who had died before she'd ever got the chance to know her properly.

She would never stop envying those who had got to know her so much better.

"But why did you do it that way?" she wondered. "If you didn't want her…"

"I did want her!" Charlie snapped, more bitterly than she had actually intended. "I wasn't able to keep her."

"I don't understand," Morag finally confessed.

She looked between the three anxious faces.

"Charlie was raped," Ross finally explained.

His daughter was struck by the pain evident in his voice. She squeezed Joey's hand tighter.

"Oh!" Morag managed. "I'm… I'm so sorry. I…"

"I wanted to keep her," Charlie said quietly. "I tried but it was just… I couldn't. It wasn't meant to come out like this."

"Well, we can sue that fucking Doctor," Morag muttered. "What was he thinking?"

They were interrupted by the door opening. Everyone hoped it was Ruby but it was Judy.

"Charlie," she greeted. "Joey. I hear things haven't gone very well."

"You could say that," Charlie said unhappily.

"I am so, so sorry," the midwife apologised. "And I can assure you that my colleague is in serious trouble. But right now, you need an ultrasound. Is that right?"

Charlie nodded. She felt like she had no fight left in her. Judy introduced herself to Ross and Morag as she set up the machine.

"Should someone try and find Ruby?" Joey fretted.

"I will," Morag offered, hurrying from the room.

The last thing the poor girl needed was to be left on her own at a time like this.

"Please tell her that I can explain," Charlie begged.

"Of course," Morag said.

"I really am sorry for what Doctor McQueen said," Judy apologised.

She put the gel on Charlie's tummy and began to search for a good view of the baby. She smiled when she located it.

"There we go," she said.

"Is everything okay?" Charlie asked anxiously.

"Everything is perfectly fine," Judy promised.

Ross stepped closer, eager to see the screen. So much had happened in such a short space of time. His head was spinning.

"Is it too soon to tell a gender yet?" he wondered.

"Officially, yes, but I could unofficially give you a guess if you wanted me to," Judy offered.

Charlie and Joey communicated silently.

"Yes, please," they agreed in unison.

Judy chuckled and informed them that she believed they were having a boy.

"So, we're having one of each?" Joey said with a smile. "That's pretty cool."

"Pretty cool indeed," Charlie said.

Now she just hoped that she hadn't lost Ruby completely.

"Everything looks to be in order," Judy confirmed. "Baby is…"

She clicked the screen a few times, taking measurements.

"Eleven centimetres long and he weighs 98g," she says. "He's starting to plump up nicely now so you're on track. And he doesn't seem to have been affected by the accident at all."

"That's a relief," Charlie said, relaxing and letting out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

Joey kept hold of her hand.

"Now, I've noticed some swelling on your ankles," Judy pointed out.

Charlie flushed with embarrassment.

"Was that from the accident or did you have that before?" the midwife asked.

"Before," Charlie admitted.

"Then you need to be careful to drink a bit more water, okay?" Judy instructed.

"Okay," Charlie agreed. "Sorry."

"No need to apologise. That's what I'm here for – to help you with this stuff."

She turned to Joey.

"How are you getting along?" she asked.

Joey smiled.

"Pretty good," she said. "I think we're on track with everything."

"Good," Judy said. "Now, I have to get to another patient but would you make an appointment to see me to discuss what happened with Doctor McQueen, please? I'd like to understand what really went on so that we can figure out what to do about it."

"Of course," Charlie said.

Judy paused at the door.

"And please be more careful when you're getting out the car next time!" she called back.

* * *

Morag found Ruby outside the hospital, sitting on low wall, staring vacantly ahead of her.

"We're missing the scan," she said quietly, sitting beside her.

"You'd better go back inside then," Ruby replied.

She continued to stare ahead, refusing to look at Morag.

"Don't you want to hear Charlie's side of the story?" Morag asked. "Find out what really happened?"

"I gave the bitch a chance to talk to me and she barely opened her mouth," Ruby said.

Morag was taken aback by the level of venom in her voice.

"I think she was in shock," she said.

"And I wasn't?" Ruby snapped.

"We all were."

"Well, I'm not particularly interested in anything that liar has to say," Ruby stated.

Morag sighed.

"You can't just ignore this, Ruby," she insisted.

Ruby stood up and turned back to the woman she had once believed to be her step mother.

"Watch me," she challenged.

Then she walked away.

* * *

A short while later, Ross and Morag had left Charlie alone with Joey at the hospital.

"This day really didn't turn out how I was hoping it would," Charlie sighed.

She rested back in her bed, longing to be at home. Joey sat by her side, holding her hand and staying close.

"It hasn't been the greatest," she admitted. "But hopefully the Doctor will let you out tomorrow and then you can go home."

"And then I get to deal with Ruby," Charlie added glumly.

Joey lifted Charlie's hand and kissed it.

"If we just give her time, she'll come round," she said certainly. "She'll give you the chance to explain, we'll talk everything through and it'll all be okay."

"Do you really believe that?" Charlie asked.

"If you and me and our babies can be right here, right now in this moment, then I believe anything can happen," Joey said. "I believe in miracles because you're _my _miracle. And I also believe in the love you and Ruby have for each other. She's not just going to walk away from that."

"I really hope you're right."

Joey kissed her hand again and stroked her face.

"Of course I'm right," she said.

They gazed lovingly at each other for a moment.

"I'd still love to know what we were doing at the house in the first place," Joey said.

It seemed like such a long time ago now. Charlie sighed, weighing up her options.

"I um… well, I had a plan," she said.

"And what was the plan?"

"I wanted to do it so perfectly but… well, I guess that didn't work," the police officer said unhappily.

Joey shifted closer.

"What was the plan, Charlie?"

"I kind of committed fraud," Charlie admitted.

Joey couldn't hide her shock.

"Okay, that wasn't exactly what I expected you to say!" she chuckled. "But okay, we'll go with it. Why did you commit fraud, _Senior Constable _Buckton?"

"Because I applied for a mortgage," Charlie revealed. "In both our names. As a… as a commitment to you. Like… you know, to say that I'm in this with you forever. Except I… I was going to say it in better circumstances and just… well, better. The idea was to take you to the house and tell you that it was ours and I wrote down a speech so that I could say it nicely. And I… I didn't want to say it like this. I'm sorry."

She studied Charlie's face, a smile twitching at the corners of her mouth.

"You really applied for a joint mortgage?" she asked rather incredulously.

"Yes," Charlie said. "And I got it. I mean, it'll take time for all the paperwork and everything to go through but the house is essentially ours. We've bought it. It was meant to be a surprise."

Joey didn't hesitate in flinging herself into Charlie's arms.

* * *

_Next time… Joey helps to build bridges with Ruby…_


	23. Chapter 23

_This will be your last update until Monday, I'm afraid. I hope you enjoy it. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Twenty Three**

It had taken a lot of negation but Joey had reluctantly agreed that she and 'Little Joey' shouldn't try and spend the night at the hospital.

"I just hate leaving you," Joey sighed, holding her girlfriend's hand.

Charlie kissed her hand and promised her that she would be fine.

"The staff will look after me and I should be out of here in a couple of days," she said. "And besides, there's something I need you to do for me."

"Ruby?" Joey asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes, please," Charlie said softly.

Her heart broke at the mere thought of her daughter.

"Could you try and talk to her? Try to explain?"

"Of course I will, Charlie," Joey promised. "Everything will work out, okay? I know it will. Me, you, Ruby and the babies… we'll be so happy together… in our new home."

Charlie met her smile and kissed her.

* * *

Joey found Ruby sitting on the beach, alone in the dark, staring at the moonlight bouncing off the waves. She took a deep breath and then came to sit quietly beside her.

"She loves you, you know," she said softly.

"Shame she took so long," Ruby remarked.

She continued to look out to sea, ignoring her sister in law or step mother, or whatever Joey was meant to be to her now.

"She always loved you," Joey insisted. "It was an impossible situation."

"What, she was a slut and hesitated too long to have an abortion?" Ruby said.

"It was nothing like that," Joey told her.

Ruby finally turned to look at her. Her heart pounded as she asked, in a quieter voice, what it had been like.

"She was attacked, Ruby," Joey admitted softly.

The teenager sat up straighter, her breath catching her in her throat.

"Excuse me?" she managed.

"She was attacked," Joey said, deliberately keeping her voice low and unthreatening. "She was only a child herself and she didn't know what to do or how to cope. She had you because she loved you. And she tried so hard to be your Mum when you were born but she was falling apart. She lost herself and she couldn't be what you needed her to be."

"So then what happened?" Ruby asked.

"She had to go away for a little while," Joey explained.

"Because she didn't love me?"

Joey put her arm around her and held her tight.

"She loved you more than anything," she promised. "But she hated herself and she was in so much pain. She was so young and fragile and broken, Ruby. She couldn't cope. She thought if she left for a few days, she could clear her head and heal and then come back to you but it just… didn't happen that way."

"How _did _it happen?" Ruby wanted to know.

"Days turned into weeks," Joey explained. "Then months. By the time she came back, you were a year old and you thought her parents were yours. She reluctantly agreed that it wasn't fair to confuse you and change things when you were settled and happy so…"

Ruby sighed heavily, sinking against Joey.

"When I was a kid, I used to wish Charlie was my Mum," she admitted.

Joey had never heard her sounding so lost before.

"She was just always so amazing, you know?" Ruby said. "She was the coolest older sister ever. I could talk to her about anything and I loved her so much. She was always spoiling me and spending time with me and letting me know how much she loved me. She was just… wonderful. She was the one I turned to with everything."

"And she still can be," Joey said softly.

Ruby shook her head.

"Everything's changed now," she stated.

"It doesn't have to change," Joey replied.

Ruby drew away and looked at her.

"She lied to me for my whole life," she said bitterly. "And it's not even like she decided to tell me the truth now. That stupid Doctor did. He blurted out a secret I might never have known. How can I even look at her again, Joey?"

"You can do it by understanding the situation she's been in," Joey said without hesitation. "By thinking about everything I've just told you."

"She lied to me," Ruby said. "She gave birth to me and then abandoned me. She's been the best sister in the world all the time only to masquerade being the world's worst mother."

She clenched her fists in her lap. Tears dripped onto her hands. Joey kept her arm around her.

"Do you remember what you said to me when I told you I was pregnant from Robbo's raping me?" she asked.

Ruby shrugged.

"You couldn't imagine being able to go through with having the baby," Joey reminded her. "And I said I wouldn't have coped without support. Without Charlie. Without you."

Ruby just shrugged again.

"Before I managed to come home to you two, I just wanted to die," Joey admitted. "I wanted my baby, this one, the one I love and can't wait to meet… to die too. To be gone. To never have existed. I had no idea how I was ever going to deal with the situation and I only could because of you and Charlie."

Ruby swallowed and studied the sand in her hands.

"Sixteen years ago, Charlie was alone," Joey continued. "She'd been raped by her boyfriend, someone she thought she could turn to, someone she thought she could trust. She was so frightened and scared that she pushed her friends away and as hard as they tried, her parents could never quite understand. I don't think she's ever quite recovered from her father, a police officer, refusing to pursue a criminal investigation into what happened to her."

Ruby sat up straighter.

"He refused?" she asked.

"She left it a long time before she told anyone what happened," Joey said. "There was no physical evidence that it had been rape and not consensual so it was her words against this boy's. Ross didn't want to put her through it and although I'm sure, in his own way, he was trying to protect her, she felt like it meant he didn't believe her. It hurt her. He let her down."

Ruby nodded and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. Joey clutched her a little closer.

"So, she was scared and alone," Joey said. "You told me when you found out about my little one that you couldn't imagine being able to go through it. And I said that at least I was older than you. But Charlie was younger, Ruby. She was fourteen. Can you imagine surviving what she did? Two years younger than you are now, alone?"

Ruby shook her head. A sob escaped her.

"She really did try her best, Ruby," Joey promised. "She thought she was doing right by you at every turn. That's all she's ever wanted to do. She loves you."

"I love her too," Ruby said sadly. "But I feel like I don't know her anymore."

"Do you think you could try and get to know her again?" Joey asked hopefully.

Ruby chewed her lip and nodded reluctantly.

"I have to, don't I?" she said quietly. "We're family."

* * *

_Next time… Can Ruby face seeing Charlie again…?_


	24. Chapter 24

_Sorry for the lack of update yesterday – the weekend kind of got away from me. I finally got over this bug I've had so it was my first opportunity to meet my little Goddaughter for the first time. And my last opportunity to see my best friend, one of her Mums at home before she goes into hospital to start chemo again so I was a bit shattered by the time I got back. But I hope you enjoy the chapter. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Twenty Four**

"What are you doing back here?" Charlie wondered, when Joey reappeared in her hospital room that evening.

Her heart lurched when Ruby appeared behind her.

"Ruby?" she managed, hardly daring to believe that she was really there.

"Hi," the teenager said meekly.

"Is it okay to come in or are you tired?" Joey checked.

"Never too tired for either of you," Charlie welcomed.

She and Ruby both stepped further into the room and approached the bed. Ruby stayed by Joey's side, staying quiet as she watched her lean in and kiss Charlie on the lips.

"How are you feeling?" Joey asked.

"Sore," Charlie asked. "Bored. I want to come home."

"Soon," Joey said. "How's little one?"

She patted Charlie gently rounded tummy.

"He's doing okay," Charlie said. "Nice and settled and safe."

"Glad you've got a baby you can be happy about," Ruby said bitterly.

Charlie swallowed and looked down, cursing herself for being insensitive. Joey glanced at Ruby, silently begging her to be civil.

"Ruby and I have had a nice long chat and she wants to work things out with you," she said firmly. "Don't you, Ruby?"

"I said I can try," Ruby said, sounding much like a petulant teenager. "But looking at you now… no, I don't think I can."

With that, she walked back out. Charlie and Joey both called after her but she ignored them.

"Charlie…" Joey tried.

"Please go after her," Charlie begged, through instant tears. "Keep her safe."

Joey hesitated, desperately wanting to stay with her girlfriend, comfort her and find some way to protect her. But she knew she had to follow her wishes and stay with Ruby.

"Okay," she said unhappily.

She kissed her goodbye and hurried out of the room, following Ruby back down the corridor. In her room, Charlie sank back against her pillows and closed her eyes. She felt sick.

* * *

It had been a silent journey back home. Joey had tried to talk to Ruby several times but she had been ignored. The teenager had then gone straight to bed.

"Is everything okay, Joey?" Leah asked worriedly.

She had been sitting on the sofa in front of the TV when they'd arrived back.

"Not even nearly," Joey sighed, coming to sit beside her.

Leah turned the television off.

"What's happened?" she asked.

Having already sought permission from Charlie, Joey awkwardly revealed the truth about Charlie and Ruby's relationship. Leah just stared at her.

"Are you serious?" she finally managed.

"Yes," Joey replied quietly.

"Wow," Leah said. "I mean, no wonder she's…"

She looked towards the stairs that Ruby had hurried up the moment she'd got home.

"Charlie really did do the best she could," Joey said a little defensively.

"I know," Leah said gently. "I know. I mean, I can't even imagine the situation she was in. But I guess… well, I guess you can…"

She looked at her friend's bump. Joey nodded.

"This is going to be a really hard few weeks… months even," she sighed.

"Well, you all have my support," Leah said. "All of you."

Joey hugged her.

* * *

"Ruby, please come to the hospital with me to see Charlie," Joey begged the teenager over breakfast the next day, not that either of them were particularly hungry.

"I don't think I can," Ruby replied glumly.

"Why not?" Joey wanted to know.

"Because every time I look at her…"

She trailed off.

"What?" Joey persisted.

"Every time I look at her, I hate her," Ruby admitted.

Joey clenched her jaw.

"Fine," she snapped. "Then just forget it. Forget everything I told you, everything that poor woman has been through, everything she's done for you. Continue being a selfish bitch."

She stormed off to her room and slammed the door. She flung herself onto her bed in tears. Ruby dissolved into her own tears at the table.

* * *

At the hospital, Charlie was eager for a visit from Joey. She hoped that today might bring Ruby to her bedside so that they might be able to sort things out. If that was even possible. Judy had come by that morning in order to talk through what had happened with Doctor McQueen. She had apologised profusely on behalf of the hospital and assured her that his misconduct would be dealt with.

* * *

"What's up, Rubes?" Xavier asked worriedly. "You sounded awful on the phone."

Ruby had met up with her boyfriend on the beach in a state of distress.

"Do you think Martha would let me move in with you for a few days?" she asked, getting right to the point.

Xavier looked startled.

"I don't know," he said. "Why would you need to do that?"

"I've fallen out with Charlie," Ruby admitted. "For good. I don't… I don't know if I'll ever be able to speak to her again. I don't know what to do or where to go."

* * *

_Next time… Ruby walks out on Charlie and Joey…_


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter Twenty Five**

Joey was at the hospital with Charlie when Ruby came over to see her mother. The teenager looked like she hadn't slept. Her eyes were puffy and had dark circles beneath them and she looked constantly on the verge of tears.

"Ruby!" Charlie said, elated to see her.

She ignored the pain in her hip as she tried to sit up, greet her and let her know that she was happy she was there.

"I'm not staying," Ruby told her, keeping her distance.

Charlie looked immediately crushed. Ruby refused to look at Joey, whom she had not yet forgiven for snapping at her that morning.

"I just thought you should know that I'm moving out," she told them.

Both Charlie and Joey sat up straighter.

"Excuse me?" Charlie managed.

"I don't know for how long exactly but Martha's letting me stay with her and Hugo and Xavier for a few nights," Ruby explained. "I think it's best."

"No," Charlie argued. "It's best that you stay at home, where you belong."

"I can't stay there, Charlie," Ruby insisted. "Not with _her_."

She shot at glare in Joey's direction.

"And especially not when you come home," she added.

"Ruby, please don't leave me," Charlie begged. "Please can we just work through this?"

"I'm not saying we can't work through it," Ruby told her. "I'm just saying I need space and I need time, okay?"

"But…"

"I've made my decision."

She turned to leave. Joey stood up.

"Biology aside, Charlie's your guardian, Ruby," she said. "You can't just decide you're moving out. You need to consult her on this."

She kept her voice quiet and non-confrontational. But she was still firm.

"I think she might have undermined herself there," Ruby replied.

"She's still your guardian and I don't think she's very comfortable with you living with your boyfriend," Joey said. "Are you?"

She turned to Charlie, who shook her head.

"I'd really prefer you not to be shacking up with Xavier," she admitted.

"Well, after all the people you've shacked up with over the years, I don't think you've got a leg to stand on," Ruby snapped. "I mean, you don't normally go as far as living with them but you do like to fuck around, don't you?"

Charlie fell silent, deeply wounded.

"Ruby, it's not okay to talk to Charlie that way," Joey warned.

"You know what?" Ruby hissed. "I'll talk to her however I like. My whole life fell apart yesterday and all your fault, Charlie! All your fault!"

"I…"

"How could you have lied to me for this long?" Ruby demanded angrily. "I mean, were you ever even going to tell me? Or was I just going to go to my grave as the spawn of you and Satan? Was my whole life going to be a lie?"

"Ruby, I _tried_," Charlie said desperately. "I was an impossible situation. I tried. I wanted to be your Mum. I…"

"I know," Ruby said, softening her voice just a little. "Joey told me everything but I… Do you know how hard it is to know that you're my birth Mum and that you abandoned me and then to see you carry this kid so happily? To know you and Joey and the babies are going to be a family together?"

"But it's a different situation now…" Charlie tried.

"And it's not just us," Joey added. "We're a family of five, Ruby. Not four."

"Not anymore," Ruby said sadly, tears threatening to overwhelm her. "I feel like I'm nothing to do with you anymore."

"Ruby, please…" Charlie begged, reaching for her hand.

She was surprised but pleased when Ruby permitted the contact.

"Please can we work through this together?"

"I can't, Charlie," Ruby said. "I'm sorry."

She broke away. Charlie wept as her hand dropped back onto the bed.

"I don't want you staying with Xavier," she said, gathering herself together.

Ruby clenched her jaw, annoyed.

"Fine," she said bitterly. "I'll find somewhere else."

She stormed out. Charlie collapsed into Joey's arms.

* * *

That night, Ruby stayed the night at Irene's house, sleeping in Belle's old room, which has been vacated since she'd married Aden. She'd stayed up for much of the night talking to Annie and, surprisingly, Geoff, about the revelations about how she had come to be alive. She had never really spent all that much time with her best friend's brother but she found him warm and receptive to her situation and she needed his kindness right now.

* * *

Joey stayed at the hospital for as long as she could get away with. But she had to think of their daughter, who needed her to rest and take care of herself and not just be there for Charlie. The good news was that Charlie would be allowed home from the hospital the next day, which would be a relief to everybody. Joey couldn't wait. She just hoped that once Charlie was back in action, everything would be okay again and that they could sort everything out with Ruby.

* * *

The next morning, Charlie refused to go straight home. As soon as she was discharged from the hospital, she insisted that the taxi took her and Joey to Irene's house so that she could talk things through properly with Ruby.

"Charlie!" Annie said in surprise when she opened the door. "How are you feeling?"

"Stressed," Charlie replied bluntly. "Where's Ruby?"

"Um…"

Charlie and Joey entered the house. They were too stressed to notice the way she cringed. She hadn't been comfortable with them or their situation since the news had first spread that they were an item. And her head had nearly exploded when she'd learnt that they were both pregnant.

"Ruby!" Charlie called. "Ruby, I need to talk to you!"

"Maybe she's in her room," Annie said. "I've only just got in myself…"

She headed across the lounge, towards Belle's old room but stopped short when she spotted a note on the table. She picked it up, her face falling.

"Um… Charlie?" she managed.

"What is it?" Charlie asked worried.

Annie handed the note over. Both Ruby and Geoff had left town.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and Joey try to support each other…_


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter Twenty Six**

It had been a stressful couple of weeks and things didn't look to be letting up any time soon. Ruby was apparently long gone with Geoff and nobody knew where she was. Geoff had made a couple of calls just to let Irene and Annie know that they were safe but Ruby had not made any contact with her stressed out mother.

"I don't want to go back to work tomorrow," Charlie admitted.

She had been on sick leave after the accident and Joey had been doing her best to look after her. But it hadn't been the easiest thing in the world, what with them both being well into their pregnancies now. Charlie was nineteen weeks and her stress levels were not helping the situation and at twenty seven weeks, Joey was entering her third trimester.

"Can you take any more time off?" Joey asked.

They were sat on the sofa together, having had a quiet morning in front of the television together. She rubbed her tummy, which was becoming increasingly itchy and uncomfortable.

"Are you still sore?" Charlie asked worriedly.

They'd checked with the book and at this stage, an itchy belly was normal, so long as it didn't spread to other parts of the body but that didn't make it any easier to deal with.

"Not sore exactly," Joey said. "I just… don't like it."

"Well, how about I go and get us some lunch from the Diner?" Charlie suggested.

"What about your hip?" Joey fretted.

"I need to get out," Charlie said. "And if I'm back at work then I need to get used to getting around and everything."

Joey still looked unsure.

"I'll get that chocolate orange cheesecake you love so much," Charlie tempted.

Joey grinned. Charlie leant over and kissed her.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," she promised.

"Be careful getting in and out of the car," Joey warned.

Charlie pouted and asked if that was going to be the goodbye every single time now.

"Yep," Joey replied.

* * *

An hour later, Joey was pleased to hear Charlie come home.

"Did they make the cheesecake from scratch or something?" she wondered.

Charlie apologised and presented her with a Panini and the dessert she always ordered when they went to the Diner for lunch. She'd also got her a takeaway chocolate milkshake. It wasn't like they had to minimise calories just now.

"I made a bit of a detour," Charlie admitted.

"What kind of detour?" Joey asked curiously.

Charlie produced a shopping bag and handed it over. Puzzled, Joey foraged inside and pulled out some cocoa butter, a cool mist spray and a couple of pairs of very comfortable looking tracksuit bottoms made from natural fibres.

"The book said that these are the things you need that will help with the itching," Charlie explained.

Joey couldn't help but smile. She pulled Charlie into a hug.

"I love you so much," she whispered.

"They're just a couple of bits," Charlie replied.

"I love that even though you're going through hell, you care that much for me that you'll do something like that," Joey told her.

"Well, I love you," Charlie said. "No matter what happens, I'm never going to lose sight of that."

They kissed tenderly before Charlie opened the cocoa butter and gently rubbed it onto Joey's tummy. She giggled as the baby began to respond and kick.

"I think she likes it!" Joey grinned.

"I think she does!" Charlie agreed.

She continued to rub, happy to relieve Joey's symptoms and also to engage with the baby.

"You know, we need to start thinking about names for this little one," she mused.

"We do," Joey said.

"Do you have any ideas?" Charlie asked.

"I was considering naming her after my mother somehow," Joey said.

"Sarah?" Charlie said, nodding thoughtfully.

"She was the only member of my family that I could stand," Joey explained. "The only one that I think knew I was gay, the only one that would ever have understood, would ever have accepted me and loved me anyway. She was stolen from me before I could really find out and I miss her so much."

Charlie nodded.

"I think that's a lovely name," she said. "Sarah Collins."

"I um… wanted to talk to you about that…" Joey ventured.

Charlie retracted her hand and snuggled up.

"About what?" she asked.

"What do you think of Sarah and I becoming Collins-Buckton… or some variation of that?" she asked.

Charlie smiled instantly.

"You'd like to do that?" she asked.

"If you didn't mind?"

"I'd love it," Charlie said. "On one condition."

"What's that?"

"We did it too," she said. "Me and my little one. And hopefully Ruby too."

She frowned, thinking wistfully of the daughter she might well had lost forever. Joey took hold of her hand.

"You'd like to do that?" she asked.

"Yes," Charlie said. "I'd like the five of us to be a proper family."

"So, I think Buckton-Collins works best," Joey said. "Shall we go for that?"

Charlie grinned.

"Perfect," she said.

They kissed.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie misses Ruby and she and Joey prepare for their babies…_


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter Twenty Seven**

Charlie sighed heavily as she pulled into a parking space at the hospital. She was much less excited about her twenty week scan than she had been expecting to be. Noticing, Joey reached across the seat and held her hand.

"She'll be home soon," she said, referring to Ruby.

"When?" Charlie asked unhappily.

"When she's ready," Joey said sadly.

"But she's been gone forever," Charlie said. "We were all supposed to be so happy now, Joey. We were meant to be a family."

It had been a busy week, despite Charlie still struggling to recover from her injuries. They had closed on the house and were looking to move in the following week. They'd been engaging more and more with their antenatal classes and Joey had been scaring herself with horror stories about labour. She'd also been for lots of routine blood tests, checking on baby Sarah to be. She and Charlie had also been looking at changing their names but their hope was to wait until Ruby came home so that all of them could do it together.

"We will be," Joey said, confident that they could all still make it work.

She too, longed for Ruby to come home and at least talk things through with Charlie, at least try to make things work.

"And the best thing we can do right now, is get you into that hospital bed and have our scan," she added decisively. "We can see our baby in a little more detail, find out if we're definitely having a little boy, and all the exciting stuff we did when I was twenty weeks."

She forced Charlie to look at her directly.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes," Charlie said quietly.

"Come on, Charlie," Joey begged softly. "Be happy, okay? We've got a few missing pieces but there's time to finish the jigsaw. There's always time."

Charlie smiled genuinely. She leant over and kissed her, determined that no matter how things turned out with Ruby, she was going to give her son the best life she possibly could.

* * *

All in all, it turned out to be a nice day. The scan with Judy had confirmed that Charlie was indeed having a boy, which meant that they were now having one of each. They'd obliged Hugo by phoning him to tell him the news, although he was still largely disinterested in the whole thing. Really, it was Martha who cared about the situation and about the baby and Charlie and Joey had long ago reached the decision that even if Hugo didn't care, if Martha did, they wanted to include her.

Surprisingly, Hugo had shown some level of enthusiasm about the gender, even though when they had originally invited him to it, he hadn't so much as looked in his diary to see if he was free. He and Martha had then arranged to meet up with Charlie and Joey for lunch at the Diner, where they'd chatted rather enthusiastically about the baby. They had also shared their latest news with Leah, Irene and Colleen, who had been on shift.

Following lunch, Charlie and Joey had gone into town to indulge in some shopping. With everything up in the air in recent weeks and with Ruby having left such a hole in their home and their hearts, they hadn't continued making all the preparations that they were supposed to. But they felt galvanised again and ready to look to the future.

"How did we manage to buy so much stuff?" Joey wondered when they arrived back home, laden with items. "I mean, we're pretty much sharing maternity clothes. And we're saving cots and things for the weekend when we're in our new place…"

She looked at their array of bags and grinned at Charlie.

"Looks like we got a bit carried away!" the police officer mused.

Joey hugged her.

"Are you feeling happier?" she asked quietly.

"Yes," Charlie promised. "And I've made a decision."

"What's that?" Joey asked, taking her hand and seating them both on the sofa.

"Well, if you'd be up for calling Dad and Morag and telling them the news about Bubs then I was going to call Ruby," Charlie ventured. "I don't expect her to pick up or talk to me or anything but I'm going to be brave and leave a message this time. A proper one and not just crying like I have before."

Joey smiled and squeezed her hand.

"Good," she said. "I think you're doing the right thing."

While Joey pulled out her mobile to call her in-laws, Charlie headed to their bedroom in order to make her call. Her hands trembled as she selected her daughter's name in her phone book and pushed the call button. As expected, she got her answer phone.

"Hi, Ruby, it's Charlie," she ventured. "I um… I just… I just wanted to talk to you… to tell you how much I miss you and wish you were here. Every day, I wake up and there's just this hole in my heart, in my life where you used to be… where you're supposed to be."

She sighed heavily but continued.

"We um… we've had some good news and stuff this week," she said. "I had my twenty week scan and found out that we're having a little boy. And we've closed on the house so we can move in at the weekend. It's really exciting and everything but… well, I guess what I'm trying to say is that all the while you're gone, nothing is ever going to mean as much as it's supposed to. When we move into the house, we're not going to move into it completely because the room that you chose, the room that will always be yours, will be empty until you come home."

She sighed again.

"Do you know what I mean, Ruby? Do you understand? I… I know I did wrong by you. I know I lied and I know that is unforgiveable. But I need you to understand that I was trying so hard to do the right thing, so hard to give you the best life that I could. I love you so much, Ruby. I need you. I need you here. I need you and me and Joey and the babies to be a family again. Please… please come home. Please? Come home."

Tearfully, she hung up.

* * *

That night in bed, Charlie suddenly started giggling. Rolling over, Joey grinned at her through the dark.

"What?" she wondered in curious amusement.

"The baby has hiccups," Charlie explained, still giggling.

Joey laughed too, snuggling up closer. Charlie sighed contentedly and closed her eyes.

"What are you thinking?" Joey wondered, studying her face through the dim lighting.

"Just that… despite all the bad stuff going on, I'm happy to be able to actually enjoy this pregnancy," Charlie admitted.

Joey cuddled up even closer, resting her hand on her girlfriend's tummy.

"It's nice to hear you sound so peaceful," she mused.

Charlie smiled, relaxing against the pillows and enjoying the warmth of Joey's body.

"I know these aren't the best of circumstances for either of us," she said. "But I'm happy. I'm happy that we're a family, that we've got over all the pain we were in. When… when I was pregnant with Ruby, I was so afraid of every single thing that happened. Every kick, every hiccup, everything just made me cry. I was terrified of this little thing growing inside me and in the end I let her down."

Joey squeezed her hand, willing her to understand that she had done her best.

"But this one," Charlie said. "Well, these two…"

She looked at Joey's tummy, eight weeks ahead of her own.

"We're going to do right by them, aren't we?" she asked. "We're going to be good parents. They're never going to want for anything. We'll never lie to them, never hurt them, let them down… none of that. We'll give them the lives we always wanted for ourselves."

Joey smiled and kissed her cheek.

"We will," she promised.

"And Ruby will be part of that when she's ready?" Charlie asked, genuinely seeking an answer.

"Of course," Joey said. "She's not gone forever. She'll be back. I know it."

* * *

"I just can't believe you're actually moving out," Leah said sadly.

"And I can't believe I'm playing the feeble woman who can't lift boxes," Charlie grumped.

She and Joey had given in and hired removal people to do all the hard labour for them.

"Charlie, we're pregnant, not feeble," Joey cajoled her. "Protecting these little ones is more important than our pride."

Charlie nodded but still looked a little cranky.

"And besides, we got hot lesbians to do it," Joey added. "It's not like we hired stereotypical, hunky men."

Charlie snorted with laughter. Joey had been in charge of the booking.

"I know!" Leah complained. "You've literally given me no eye candy. Nothing to cheer me up on this sad day!"

Both women hugged her in commiseration.

"Anyway, we need to drive over to the house," Joey said sadly.

She turned to Leah and hugged her goodbye again, thanking her profusely for everything she had done for her since she'd first showed up on her doorstep.

"It's been my pleasure," Leah said. "And I'd better still see you all the time, even if you don't live here."

"Of course you will," Joey assured her.

Charlie took her turn to hug her housemate a second time, a woman she had become extremely close to over the last year or so.

"I'll miss living with you," they both said.

"Time to go," Joey nudged when it looked like neither woman wanted to say goodbye.

"Is there room for another one in the car?" came a small voice from the doorway.

Everyone turned to find that Ruby had come home.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie, Joey and Ruby try to make things work…_


	28. Chapter 28

_Sorry for the late update – I had to make an emergency trip to the vet with one of my guinea pigs! Honestly, these animals of mine cause ever such a lot of trouble, don't they!? Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter. And Jensy, as for your request, I will do my best. Love, IJKS xxs_

**Chapter Twenty Eight**

"Ruby!" Charlie gasped.

The baby kicked as if to punctuate his mother's shock.

"I got your message," Ruby said, still holding back in the doorway. "And I… I can't promise that we can fix things but I… I think we owe it to each other to try."

Charlie couldn't help but smile. She tentatively approached her daughter and was relieved when her hug was accepted.

"I'm in time for moving then?" Ruby asked when they eventually let each other go. "I saw the van outside. Did you… did you pack my stuff?"

"We did," Charlie said, glancing anxiously at Joey. "We weren't… we weren't sure if that was okay or not or…"

"It's okay," Ruby confirmed. "We need to try this, right? Try being a family."

Charlie smiled again.

"Yes please," she said.

Ruby approached Joey and hugged her, apologising for being horrible to her before she left.

"You were hurting," Joey said. "I understand. And I'm sorry too for being harsh with you. I just…"

"I know," Ruby said softly. "I understand."

They smiled affectionately at each other, only interrupted by the beeping of the horn outside. The removal men were ready to leave.

* * *

Several hours later, Charlie, Joey and Ruby were in their new home, surrounded by rather an array of boxes.

"Since when did we have so much stuff?" Ruby wondered, looking around.

Charlie laughed.

"Note that we own hardly anything related to the kitchen," she remarked, leading the way through to their new room.

The other two followed where there were barely two boxes.

"Yep," Ruby said. "And pretty much everything we do have is Joey's."

"Not _everything_," Joey said. "The salady thing you two fight over all the time is Charlie's."

Mother and daughter locked eyes and immediately decided they needed to make some ground rules. Joey chuckled, glad that things seemed to be at least a little easier between them all after Ruby's period of absence.

"So, we need to go shopping tomorrow, do we?" Ruby asked, heading back into their rather nice, large lounge, in which they did not yet have a sofa.

"Yep," Joey groaned, summoning a cushion and settling down on the floor. "It's going to be a long day!"

"It's going to be an awesome day!" Charlie said. "We get to buy all sorts of new things!"

"Yep!" Ruby agreed. "Shiny, new expensive things!"

Joey shook her head.

"I will never understand the obsession with shopping," she said.

"You're such a lesbian cliché," Charlie teased.

"So sue me!" Joey joked back.

Charlie moved closer and hugged her.

"We get to buy cute baby stuff too," she enticed.

Joey couldn't help but grin. That was the kind of shopping she was quite looking forward to.

"Are you kitting out the babies' rooms?" Ruby asked.

Both Charlie and Joey looked anxious, aware of the sensitive subject.

"Look, I know this is a difficult situation," Ruby said seriously. "And honestly, I'm struggling. And I will be for a long time. But the fact of the matter is that you're both pregnant, you're both going to have babies soon and I'm going to be a sister rather than an aunt like I thought. And we need to deal with that. But more importantly, we need to make sure that these babies are all ready to be welcomed into the world. And that means getting their rooms ready and everything. So, we need to do it."

"Thank you," Charlie said softly. "That… means a lot."

"We're going to try and make this work, right?" Ruby said.

"Right," Charlie agreed.

"And I gather I'm getting a sister _and _a brother," Ruby added, forcing herself to engage with the idea and renew the excitement she'd had about it all before she'd found out the truth about her real Mum.

"Yep," Joey enthused.

"Have you talked about names?" Ruby asked.

"This little one is going to be called Sarah," Joey revealed. "After my Mum."

Ruby grinned.

"And we don't know about this one yet," Charlie added.

"I'm sure we'll come up with something," Ruby said, still forcing herself to be positive and perky about the whole thing.

She wondered if it would always hurt to see Charlie happy about her new son when she had evidently been inconsolable about the daughter she had never wanted. Not even Joey's baby would have the same experience that she had. They would have a lot in common but at least Joey was prepared to raise her child as her own, not lie to her and call her a sister instead.

"What?" she asked, when she saw Charlie and Joey exchange conspiratorial glances.

"We were um… talking about changing our surnames," Joey ventured when Charlie didn't find the courage to speak up.

"Surnames?" Ruby asked, suddenly anxious.

"Becoming Buckton-Collins's," Joey explained. "All of us."

"Including me?" Ruby asked.

"Only if you want to," Charlie said quickly. "I mean, we wouldn't force you or anything. But we'd like you to. If… if you wanted to."

She looked down, feeling dumb.

"Can I think about it?" Ruby asked.

There was no point committing to anything she wasn't quite ready for. These were still early days, after all.

"Of course," Charlie said. "We can wait for you."

Ruby nodded. An awkward silence fell between them.

"So… what… where have you been, Ruby?" Charlie asked quietly.

The teenager looked up and swallowed.

"Geoff and I travelled around a bit," she said. "We went into the city. We… we stayed with Auntie Michelle for a little while."

Charlie looked alarmed.

"What?" she squeaked.

Joey held her hand, aware that this was the person with whom her girlfriend had stayed when she had abandoned Ruby with her parents.

"I found out that she was the person you stayed with when you left me," Ruby explained. "And I… I wanted to find out more about that time, about you."

"You could have asked me," Charlie said quietly. "You could have stayed here and talked to me, Ruby. I would have told you…"

"I know," Ruby said, equally as softly. "But I needed to take my own journey with this. I'm sorry, Charlie. I needed… It's hard to explain."

"I think she needed to experience what you went through, learn it for herself rather than just hear it," Joey tried.

Ruby nodded. That was exactly it.

"Auntie Michelle told me lots about how broken you were," she said. "And I saw the photo album."

Charlie hung her head in shame. Joey eyed her girlfriend, gently quizzical.

"I never wanted you to see that," Charlie said.

"At first it made me think that you hated me," Ruby said. "Seeing the way you'd cut yourself out of all those pictures. But then I realised it wasn't true. You hated yourself."

Charlie nodded, still looking at the floor. Joey put her arm around her.

"I'm sorry for all the pain you went through because of me, Charlie," Ruby said.

Charlie looked up sharply.

"It wasn't because of you," she insisted. "None of this was because of you. If ever there was an innocent party, it was you. I loved you so much, Ruby. I always have and I always will. I just couldn't cope with everything that happened to me. I…"

Ruby scooted forward and held her hands, looking her in the eye.

"I love you," she said sincerely. "We can make this work. All five of us."

* * *

_Next time… Charlie, Joey and Ruby settle into their lives together…_


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter Twenty Nine**

It had been a few weeks and things were starting to settle a little, although there were still too many awkward silences at home for Charlie, Joey or Ruby's liking. But they were working on it and that was the most important thing.

"Are you okay, Joey?" Ruby asked, furrowing her brow at the look of discomfort on her face.

Joey was sat at the table, shifting around and not looking very happy.

"Yeah, just… well, I gather pregnancy gets more and more uncomfortable from here on out until the big fun conclusion," she sighed.

Charlie came to sit at the breakfast table with them in their shiny, new kitchen, which was finally full of all the things they needed.

"The big, fun conclusion is getting an adorable, baby girl," she reminded her. "But I'm really sorry you're struggling."

She rubbed her back. Joey had been complaining of indigestion and heartburn for a few days now. They knew it was standard. The baby was growing rapidly and it meant less room for all the organs already in her body. They'd checked it all out with Judy anyway and she had been very kind and reassuring. They'd also had quite a laugh about how Charlie had it all to come.

"Is there anything we can do?" Ruby asked.

"No," Joey sighed. "I just have to get on with it. And hope I get light duties at work."

"When do you start maternity leave?"

"Oh, not for weeks yet," Joey said. "I don't want to leave until I have to."

"How come?"

"Because I only get six months," Joey explained. "And I want to spend as much of that with Sarah as I can."

Ruby nodded.

"I get that," she said. "Are you doing the same, Charlie?"

"Pretty much," Charlie said. "I'll be doing more and more desk work as time goes on. I've had a meeting with my boss and I get a sort of 'paternity' leave type thing for a couple of weeks when Sarah's born so I get to support Joey and spend time with the little one. Then I'll go on maternity leave when I have to for six months for when this one is born."

She patted her tummy affectionately.

"That's really lovely," Ruby said. "Hey, do I get some sort of 'sibling leave' from school?"

The hope in her voice made everyone laugh. Charlie also couldn't help but be pleased at the reference to being a sibling and not an auntie. Maybe everything really was changing for the better after all.

"I don't think so, sweetheart," Charlie chuckled affectionately. "But you'll get to spend as much non-school time with both of them as you like."

"Good," Ruby grinned. "I can live with that."

Joey smiled and then winced again. She looked down at her pregnant tummy.

"You had better be one cute baby for all the discomfort you're causing me," she told the baby.

She giggled when she got a kick in response.

"Does anyone else get the feeling that Sarah is going to have Joey wrapped around her little finger?" Charlie teased.

"Yep," Ruby agreed. "And I don't think Sarah's brother will be any different with you, will he?"

Charlie pouted but looked suitably guilty.

"Charlie?" Ruby ventured.

The police officer looked up anxiously, aware that she was about to be asked an awkward question.

"When I was a baby… before you left…" Ruby ventured. "Did you spend time with me?"

"I did," Charlie confirmed.

"Did you… What was it like?"

"It was hard," Charlie admitted. "But there were moments when we were so happy together."

They both smiled.

"I enjoyed cuddling you and you seemed to like it too," Charlie said. "I never minded getting up with you in the night or changing nappies and stuff. I couldn't breastfeed or anything but I bottle-fed you and stuff."

Ruby nodded thoughtfully and then frowned.

"Then why…? Why did you leave?" Ruby asked.

"It just got too much," Charlie said.

She looked fretfully at Joey, to whom she had told the full story, something she didn't particularly want to share with her daughter.

"What did?" Ruby persisted.

"I just felt like I wasn't good enough for you," Charlie said anxiously.

"But why?"

"Because I was young and inexperienced," Charlie said. "I was broken and didn't understand anything of what was happening. Every time you cried, I thought it was because I was failing you, not because you were just a baby and that's what babies do. Every time I struggled or felt tired, I thought it was because I was useless and couldn't cope. Everything was so personal to me. You know?"

"I… think so," Ruby conceded. "I mean, you were wrong. You do know that? If you'd have stayed, you would have been a wonderful Mum."

Charlie swallowed, touched and rather startled by the compliment.

"And you're going to be a great Mum to your son," Ruby said. "And maybe even one day to me. In a different way. Sort of. I mean, it's not too late. Maybe. I don't know."

She sighed, not quite sure how to proceed.

"Thank you," Charlie said quietly.

Ruby smiled at her. Joey held her hand.

"Well, I'd better head to school," Ruby decided. "See you four for dinner this evening. I hope you feel better, Joey."

She headed on out of the house.

"You're very diplomatic," Joey told Charlie when Ruby was gone.

"I'm trying," Charlie sighed, still holding onto her girlfriend. "But her feelings for me have already been ruined, possibly forever. She doesn't need to know the details of how Mum and Dad handled everything too."

The truth was that if Charlie's parents had given her more of a chance, more encouragement and less criticism, Charlie knew she probably would have stuck around. She knew she would have been able to work harder at being a Mum. She would have stood more of a chance of not letting her daughter down.

And she'd told Joey that. She'd also confessed that she suspected her mother had wanted to keep Ruby as her own. She and Ross had tried hard to have more children after Charlie but there had been complications and they hadn't been able to. There had almost been some jealousy when Charlie had fallen pregnant, regardless of the circumstances, and Charlie had always wondered if it had suited her somehow that she had been able to raise Ruby as her own.

But although she had shared that Joey, she didn't think Ruby needed to know it. She didn't need her daughter's heart being broken again and again. It just wasn't fair.

* * *

_Next time… Ruby makes a decision but is curious about her father…_


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter Thirty**

"Ugh, I don't want to go to work," Charlie complained.

"Nor do I," Joey said. "Let's just stay here in bed all day."

The pair of them had settled in very nicely to their new home and things felt much better with Ruby with each passing day. She still had a lot of questions and both she and Charlie carried a lot of hurt but all of them were hopeful that there would be a way from the darkness and back into the light.

"I wish I could," Charlie sighed.

The last thing she wanted to do was haul herself out of bed and work with Angelo all day. His vendetta against Hugo was getting worse and she was in a more awkward position than ever, what with him being the reluctant, accidental father of her child. Angelo seemed convinced that he was up to something dodgy, although he refused to tell her what and she was reluctant to get involved.

She, Joey and Martha had just worked out an agreement of involvement, whereby Hugo would see his son each week. He still wasn't terribly interested in the idea and Charlie suspected that he only cared on behalf of Martha who was desperately eager to be a stepmother, but she was more than happy to co-operate. She wanted her son to have as much love as it was possible to receive.

"Still, a few months down the line and we won't have to," Joey said brightly. "Our babies will be on the way and we won't have to think about anything but our happy, little family."

She grinned. Charlie leant over and kissed her.

* * *

Ruby was waiting for them at the breakfast table.

"I thought you two were never going to get up," she remarked, as the couple settled themselves down with toast and orange juice.

"Too exhausted," Joey complained, sighing heavily.

"Too much nookie?" Ruby teased, even though the idea was actually rather abhorrent to her.

Charlie snorted.

"Hardly!" she replied. "Even if both of us being pregnant wasn't too tiring and feeling so fat didn't put us off, my hands hurt so much I don't think I'd even be capable."

She shook her head and sipped her juice.

"I'm sure pregnancy was meant to be more fun than this," Joey complained. "I always saw pregnant women and they looked all shiny, like they were glowing. Turns out they were just sweating from the extra load they're lugging around. I've never felt less attractive in my life!"

Charlie leant over and kissed her.

"I think you're beautiful," she said. "But I do understand how you feel so I won't push it."

"When you two have finished swooning, I have some news," Ruby ventured.

Both of them turned to offer her their full attention.

"I'd like to change my name to the double barrel with you," the teenager told them.

Charlie's eyes lit up immediately.

"Really?" she asked.

"Well, if we're all going to be a family," Ruby said. "Us three and the babies, then we should be doing it together, shouldn't we? I don't want to be the only Buckton if you're all going to be Buckton-Collins's-es-es-es…"

She giggled, making the other two laugh as well.

"So yeah," she concluded. "I'd like to change my name as well. I think it's a great idea."

"We're really glad," Joey enthused.

"Really glad," Charlie echoed.

She stood and hugged her daughter, squeezing her tight.

"Um… after school, could we sit down and talk about some stuff?" Ruby asked hesitantly.

"What kind of stuff?" Charlie asked, tensing just a little.

"About… the past," Ruby said anxiously.

Charlie sighed, sure she wouldn't like where this was going. But she knew she would have to face it sometime and at least Ruby was being upfront and mature about everything so far. And Charlie knew she had to be too. The last thing she wanted was for her daughter to run away again.

* * *

"Hi, Charlie," Watson said cheerfully, knocking on the Senior Constable's office door.

"Hey, Watson," Charlie said. "Come on in."

She closed her laptop and smiled at her colleague, happy to offer her full attention.

"What's up?" she asked.

"Nothing work related," Watson said. "I just came to give you this."

She offered out a gift bag with a shy smile. Curiously, Charlie accepted it and pulled out a selection of newborn babygrows and a pair of adorable little booties.

"Watson, these are gorgeous!" she exclaimed.

"I know it's a bit early and probably a bit random," Watson said. "But I saw them in town yesterday and I couldn't help myself. Do you like them?"

"I love them!" Charlie said, standing up and pulling her friend into a hug.

"Now, those are for your little boy, hence the colour," Watson said. "But I couldn't possibly get them without giving your little girl something too so…"

She turned and dug around in her bag again and presented Charlie with another little gift bag. Inside the gift bag was a matching set of babygrows and another pair of booties for Joey's daughter. She was rewarded with another hug.

"They're just token things but I saw them and thought you might like them so…" Watson said bashfully.

"Thank you," Charlie said sincerely. "I really appreciate them and Joey will too."

She smiled and gestured for her friend to sit down.

"How are things in your new home?" Watson asked.

"Yeah, they're really good," Charlie said. "We keep meaning to organise a housewarming but with work and pregnancy and Ruby and everything, we just haven't had any time!"

She laughed rather tiredly.

"How are things going with Ruby now?" Watson asked kindly. "Are they better?"

"Yeah, they've settled," Charlie confirmed. "Although she asked this morning if we could sit down and talk tonight in a way that suggested I might not like the subject matter so I'm a bit nervous."

"I'm sure it'll be okay," Watson encouraged. "You two and Joey have worked so hard to build yourselves back up, I'm sure you'll get over each stumbling block if it arises."

She reached over and squeezed her arm.

"Thank you," Charlie said. "And thank you for the gifts. They really are lovely."

* * *

That evening, Charlie, Joey and Ruby sat around the dinner table.

"So, Rubes… what um… what were you wanting to talk about?" Charlie ventured anxiously.

She glanced at Joey who smiled her encouragement.

"I wanted to ask you about my father," Ruby admitted.

Charlie nearly choked on her food. She had expected it, had tried to prepare herself for the question all day. But it still hurt and it still made her feel sick and frightened.

"Please, Charlie?" Ruby begged. "I need to know where I come from."

"You come from me," Charlie said tightly.

"Not from you alone though," Ruby pointed out.

"_He _doesn't matter," Charlie insisted. "Just like Robbo doesn't matter with Sarah. Throughout her life, she'll have Joey and me and you and our family and she never has to even know his name. And you don't have to know…"

"But I _want _to know," Ruby cut in a little more harshly than she meant to.

Charlie looked like she'd been punched in the stomach.

"I need to know," Ruby said more quietly. "I can't… I can't settle any of this in my mind until I know who he is, what he was like…"

"He was a fucking monster," Charlie interrupted. "That's it. End of story. End of discussion."

"But Charlie…"

"No!" Charlie snapped. "There's no more!"

"Can I know his name or do you want me to refer to him as Daddy?" Ruby asked sarcastically.

She was annoyed. She'd wanted a civil discussion. She'd wanted them to be grownups about it all but apparently Charlie was incapable.

"Ruby, this man hurt Charlie in the worst way," Joey said gently. "I mean, I could sit here and I describe to you what that's like but it won't be pleasant for anyone. It won't be nice for either of us to relive and it won't be nice for you to know exactly what you came from."

"I know," Ruby sighed.

"Isn't it better just to know you came from a bad man and a really good woman?"

"I just want to know his name," Ruby said sadly.

Charlie sighed so heavily she looked like she was about to collapse.

"His name was Grant," she revealed. "And he was a monster in disguise. That's how he got away with it because I would never have ever been in the same room as him if I'd have known what kind of person he really was. But he acted like a charmer, like a good guy. He tricked me into thinking I was lucky he was even talking to me."

Ruby nodded. She reached over and squeezed Charlie's hand, quietly thanking her for opening up. It was a big step.

"Do I look like him?" she asked.

"No," Charlie said. "I can't see any of him in you. He's the epitome of evil and you couldn't be more opposite to that if you tried."

They smiled affectionately at each other.

"I wish he wasn't my Dad," Ruby said. "Whoever he is. But I'm glad you're my Mum."

They hugged.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and Joey enjoy some time together while Ruby hatches a plan…_


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter Thirty One**

"That must have looked so hot we could star in a porn film," Joey joked, as she lay, gasping on the mattress.

Charlie giggled, cuddling up to her girlfriend in bed.

"I'm just glad we're still up to doing it," she said. "The book says that intimacy at this stage is very important."

Joey grinned, happy at the closeness – physical and emotional – that she and Charlie had just shared.

"Plus, I'm pretty sure there's some perve out there that'd be into watching something like that," Charlie added with a smirk.

Joey laughed.

"Two pregnant chicks, one of them so fat she might burst, going at it?" she asked.

Charlie turned to gaze into her eyes.

"You're not fat, you're beautiful," she said sincerely. "Unless you're talking about me, in which case you're in a world of trouble."

Joey winked mischievously at her, earning her a passionate kiss.

"Hey, the book also says you're meant to be talking to Sarah through my bump at this stage," Joey mused when they had settled back down. "Do you think she heard all our shenanigans?"

She feigned horror, making Charlie laugh.

"Well, we were very gentle," the police officer said. "I'm sure Sarah and this little one didn't mind."

Joey rolled over and placed a hand on Charlie's tummy.

"We need to start thinking about names for this little guy," she said. "And before you say anything, I am _not _calling him Hugo Junior."

Charlie snorted with laughter.

"Agreed," she said. "Although we should probably allow him and Martha to be included in the decision making. I want us to have overall say though. He's only interested in the baby at all because she is."

"You make a good point," Joey mused. "It's funny, even when I couldn't bear the thought of being pregnant with Sarah because of how it happened… I still felt… _connected_ to her, you know? And even when I was upset about you being pregnant, I felt connected. I can't quite get my head around Hugo's indifference, like… how can he not care?"

Charlie shrugged.

"I guess he's not… involved that much, is he?" she said. "He doesn't feel the kicking or…"

"Go to the scans…"

"Pay much attention to the growing bump…"

"Remember at any given moment there's a baby on the way!" Joey mocked, making Charlie laugh.

"Read the baby book," the police officer added.

"Deal with the wind!" Joey joked, prompting Charlie to snort with laughter.

* * *

Having fallen out of sync with Xavier since her return to the Bay and thus broken up with him, Ruby had been growing closer and closer to Geoff. They had bonded during their trip and although nothing romantic had happened between them, Ruby definitely had feelings for him and she suspected he had feelings for her. She just wasn't quite sure how to pursue things. So for now, they were just spending as much time together as possible.

"Ruby, I really don't think this is a good idea," Geoff said doubtfully.

Ever since her discussion with Charlie, the one in which she had sort of got some information about her father, the man who had raped her mother, the more she had wanted to learn.

"I just want to learn about him," Ruby said.

"Don't you know enough though?" Geoff asked, as his friend pored through Grant Bledcoe's Facebook page.

It was almost completely private so there wasn't a whole lot to see until Jai was able to come through with getting her in but it was enough for now.

"I hardly know anything," Ruby said.

Geoff reached out and took both her hands, guiding her away from the computer. He looked sincerely into her eyes.

"He attacked Charlie," he said. "He forced her to have sex with him. He took her virginity, Ruby. Why do you need to know more than that?"

His words got to her. She wavered. But she shook them away and turned back to the computer.

"I just do," she said quietly. "Please understand. Please support me."

He sighed and settled into the chair next to her.

"I'd support you through anything, Rubes," he promised. "But that doesn't mean I think it's a good idea. Just for the record."

Ruby smiled.

"You're too lovely to me, Geoff," she said.

"You're easy to be lovely too," he told her. "I think you're amazing."

She turned and smiled at him. Then, deciding to just go for it, she kissed him.

* * *

Charlie and Joey were still happily cuddled up in bed.

"I like the idea of including my Dad somewhere in the name," Charlie mused. "But not the first name. That would feel weird to me… because he's still around and although he's 'Dad' to me, his name has always been used to me so many times because of work. Does that make sense?"

"It does," Joey assured her.

"But the middle name maybe, if we could make it work."

Joey smiled.

"That's a nice idea," she agreed.

"But I don't really know for a first name," Charlie admitted. "Nothing has really jumped out at me."

"Well, there's still a while to go," Joey said. "There's plenty of time to find something."

"Yeah," Charlie grinned, patting her tummy. "We'll find the perfect name for you, little one."

Joey rested her hand atop Charlie's.

"The perfect name for the perfect baby joining our perfect little family," she said.

* * *

"Ruby, this is a terrible idea," Geoff objected.

Things had moved on rather rapidly over the course of the morning. Jai had come over and reluctantly helped Ruby access Grant's Facebook page where she'd been able to have a good look at him, his family and his world. She had then struck upon an idea. She was going to find a way to meet him.

* * *

_Next time… While Charlie and Joey look towards Sarah's birth, Ruby heads off to the city to meet Grant Bledcoe…_


	32. Chapter 32

_Sorry for the lack of update yesterday. Everything got a bit hectic with seeing the baby before I had to come back home again. I should be updating every day until Saturday, when I'll be taking a break until Tuesday. I hope you enjoy this one. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Thirty Two**

Charlie and Joey picked Ruby up from school to go through Charlie's most recent midwife appointment with her. They wanted to make her feel as included as possible and not left out in any way.

They headed to the Diner and ordered their food, eager to get started on their discussion together while they waited for it to arrive. Charlie was twenty five weeks now and Joey was thirty three. Both births were hurtling closer and closer.

"So, tell me all about it!" Ruby requested eagerly.

"Well, we've agreed that I'll have an Elective Caesarean," Charlie explained. "So, we've booked the date in for that, a week before I'm due."

"How come you need that?" Ruby wondered. "Are you having that, Joey?"

"No," Joey said. "They've recommended it for Charlie because she had a caesarean before."

"With me," Ruby said glumly.

Charlie touched her hand.

"Hey, if I don't have to squeeze a giant watermelon out of a tiny space, I'm all for it," she remarked.

"Thanks, Charlie," Joey complained. "Thanks a bunch."

Ruby snorted. Charlie giggled and apologised.

"How come you had to have a caesarean with me?" Ruby wondered.

"Because I was so underdeveloped," Charlie explained. "I had, well, I still do have, a small pelvis, so when I was in labour, I was struggling to deliver you and you were getting distressed. It turned into a nightmare so they had to knock me out and take you out. I don't want to risk going through that again and they think it could be likely, plus there's a risk of tearing my scar. So we agreed that just having the operation, where I'd actually be awake for it this time, would be the best option."

"Cool," Ruby said. "The most important thing is for this to be as safe and easy as possible."

Charlie and Joey both nodded.

"So, about pushing out this watermelon…" Joey said unhappily.

* * *

The following week, Ruby was nervous as she ditched school and headed into the city by bus. With the help of a very dubious Jai, she had friended Grant on Facebook and found out where he lived. She had then found out that he and his wife were advertising for a babysitter so she had applied in a false name and she was now travelling over there as 'Lucy' for her interview.

* * *

"You're suggesting I do _what _exactly?" Joey asked, her eyes wide in shock.

Charlie giggled as Judy explained the process of massaging ones perineum in preparation for childbirth.

"You know, I'm sure my mother lectured me about _not _doing that when I was teenager," Joey smirked.

Judy and Charlie both burst out laughing. Joey couldn't help but grin.

"You know, it's easy for you to laugh, Ms Elective Caesarean," Joey pretended to glare.

Charlie put her arm around her.

"Everything is going to be fine," she assured her. "You'll have Judy at the business end and me right by your side."

"Exactly," Judy agreed. "There is absolutely nothing to worry about."

"Apart from the crippling pain," Joey said dramatically.

"That's what all the drugs are for," Charlie grinned.

She kept her arm around her girlfriend, promising that everything would be alright.

"You've got a wise woman there," Judy said.

Joey grinned.

"I know," she said. "I'm very lucky."

* * *

Ruby took several breaths and knocked on the big, white front door. A few moments later, a pretty brunette opened up, smiling widely.

"Are you Lucy?" she asked.

"Yes," Ruby lied. "I'm here for the babysitting interview."

"Great," the woman said. "I'm Sandra Bledcoe. Come on in."

Ruby stepped inside the grand house, noting that her rapist father had evidently done well for himself. She surveyed her surroundings, silently commenting that her own house, the one that Charlie and Joey had worked so hard to buy was much nicer. It didn't belong to a monster for starters.

"Can I offer you a tea or a coffee?" Sandra asked, leading the way through to the kitchen.

"A coffee would be great," Ruby accepted. "Thank you."

"Sure," Sandra said. "I'll give you a basic rundown while I brew. There are two little ones, who I'll introduce you to in a moment. We've got a boy and a girl, Sam and Olivia. They're twins, aged four. I'm intending to return to work part time so we'd like someone to come in and be with them while I'm not here. We're looking at about ten hours a week. Do you think that would suit you?"

"I think that would suit me perfectly," Ruby lied.

She had no intention of taking a job with them.

"I'm about to start Uni here so I'm looking for part time work that would fit in," she explained, having rehearsed everything on her trip over.

"Oh, what are you studying?" Sandra asked.

"Business Studies and Child Development," Ruby said. "My two interests."

She grinned self-consciously to cover her own deceit.

* * *

The end of their appointment coincided with the end of school so Charlie and Joey drove over to pick Ruby up in order to take her out for the evening. Their plan was dinner and a movie with their daughter. Soon enough, their whole world was going to change with not one but two babies to take care of and although they would do everything they could to keep Ruby included and not neglect her in any way at all, she would inevitably not get as much attention as she was used to. So they wanted to spoil her a little and keep her as engaged and involved as possible.

However, parked outside the school, every student seemed to be leaving apart from Ruby.

"Hey, Xavier!" Charlie called out the window, when she spotted her daughter's ex-boyfriend.

The teenager looked up a little sullenly and shuffled towards her car. He had been avoiding her like the plague since the breakdown of his relationship with Ruby, which she understood.

"You haven't seen Ruby, have you?" Charlie asked a little awkwardly.

"No," he said. "She hasn't been in school all day. I guess she bunked off to be with her new boyfriend."

He turned away and caught up with Jai. Charlie watched them talk and caught Jai looking anxious before he hurried away with his friend.

"That's not like Ruby," Joey mused.

"Hmm…" Charlie frowned.

They decided to go round to Geoff's house to try and figure out what was going on.

* * *

"So, how long have you been married?" Ruby asked, as she settled into conversation with Sandra.

They had established all the requirements of the job and now both women were trying to find out about each other. Ruby had told her new 'employer' all about 'Lucy' and now she was trying to discover all she could about Grant's new life.

"Seven years," Sandra said. "We met at University and he swept me off my feet and the rest, as they say, is history."

Ruby covered her grimace with a smile.

"He sounds like a real charmer," she said.

"He's pretty amazing," Sandra swooned. "I'm very lucky. Not everyone finds what we have but he's a wonderful husband and father. I think you'll be very happy working for us. Well, I hope you will be."

Ruby felt a little bit sick.

"He should be home soon, actually," Sandra continued. "If you have time, you can hang on and meet him."

"That'd be great," Ruby agreed.

This was exactly what she wanted.

* * *

Geoff looked more than a little helpless, confronted by Charlie and Joey wanting to know where Ruby was. The truth of the matter was that she was in the city trying to meet her biological father, the man that had raped Charlie as a teenager. But she had left him with no cover story and refused to let him go with her so he'd basically spent the day panicking and worrying about her when he'd been supposed to be job hunting.

"Geoff, would you stop screwing around with us and just tell us where she is?" Charlie begged.

"I um…"

"Look, there's obviously something going on," Joey pointed out. "Just look at the state of you."

"She's gone to find him," Charlie realised suddenly.

Geoff looked stricken. Joey looked confused.

"Hasn't she?" Charlie demanded.

"No…" Geoff lied.

"Hasn't she?" Charlie yelled.

"I…"

Charlie repeated the question, only much, much louder.

"Yes," Geoff admitted, hanging his head.

Checking he knew the address, she demanded that he came with her and Joey to find her.

* * *

_Next time… Charlie, Joey and Geoff race to find Ruby who comes face to face with Grant…_


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter Thirty Three**

"Charlie, you need to keep calm," Joey warned from the passenger seat, although she was struggling herself.

At thirty four weeks pregnant and with Charlie at twenty six weeks, they were meant to be careful with themselves. Instead, they were flying down the road towards the city, as directed by a frightened looking Geoff, who was sat in the back of the car, anxiously remembering the address Ruby had been given for her interview as Lucy for the babysitting job for Grant's kids.

"I'm trying," Charlie said, gripping the steering wheel far too hard.

But her heart was pounding, her palms were sweating and she was essentially coming face to face with her worst nightmare. She had known there had been something up for the past week or so, ever since Ruby had started quizzing her about Grant, wanting to know little things about him. And then last week, she'd come home to find her old high school year book wasn't quite in the same place under the bed. She'd queried it and Ruby had said something about looking for her old baby book, one that Charlie had mentioned, but that she hadn't been able to find it. Charlie had dug it out later and they had quite an emotional evening going through it, looking at the bits Charlie had filled in and the obvious switch where her parents had taken over when Charlie had left. Now, she felt like an idiot. Ruby hadn't been looking for _that _book at all.

"I don't think Ruby meant to lie to you…" Geoff tried.

"Oh, she went to find that bastard by accident, did she?" Charlie snapped.

Joey turned to look back at him.

"I don't think that's going to help right now," she said awkward.

He nodded and sighed. He wanted to defend his girlfriend but in all honesty, he wasn't completely sure why she had gone to find Grant in the first place. He sat back and fell silent, looking out of the window.

"Everything's going to be okay," Joey told Charlie quietly.

"What if he hurts her?" Charlie asked, her voice catching.

"He won't," Joey promised, although she knew she had nothing to back up her statement. "Even if he tries, we'll get there in time. After everything we've all been through, I know everything will be okay. Nothing can harm us now."

"I don't… I don't know if I can even handle seeing him again," Charlie admitted.

Just the mere thought filled her with terror. It was her worst nightmare coming true.

* * *

Ruby and Sandra looked up when they heard the front door open. Ruby felt a knot twist in her stomach as he heard shoes down the corridor and a jacket being shrugged off. A bag landed on the floor and the kids hurtled cheerfully towards their father. She listened to him greet them. There was genuine warmth in his voice. This vile rapist had become a family man, a loving husband and father.

"That'll be Grant," Sandra said, standing up.

She called her husband through, eager to introduce him to Lucy. Ruby also stood, anticipating the entrance of her father into the lounge.

* * *

Charlie, Joey and Geoff arrived in the city in record time. Charlie was relieved that at least she was a police officer so that she was used to driving quickly but safely and that also, should she get pulled over, she would be more likely to get away with it. Technically, this could be considered a legal matter. She was concerned for the safety and well being of her child. She believed she was in danger.

"Do you know how to get to the address?" Joey asked.

"Yep," Charlie said.

Adult Grant had only moved a couple of streets over from where he had grown up, from the house in which he had raped her. It had been a party at his house. He'd taken her upstairs and ruined her life.

Joey reached over and rested a gentle hand on her leg.

"Everything is going to be okay," she reiterated.

Charlie tried her best to believe her.

* * *

Grant stood in the doorway of the lounge. Ruby stood up and looked at him, taking in his features and trying desperately not to recognise any of herself in him. She studied his face, assessing whether he was good looking or not. She'd kind of hoped he would be hideous but he wasn't. His eyes were warm and friendly, but she thought she could detect a sense of brittleness there. She wondered if the warmth was what had encouraged Charlie to be his girlfriend when they were kids and if the harshness had given way to cruelty and if that's what Charlie had seen in his eyes when he'd raped her.

"Grant," Sandra said, having greeted her husband with a kiss. "This is L…"

"I'm Ruby," the teenager stated boldly.

She tried to ignore the look of bewilderment on Sandra's face. She had seemed nice. It wasn't her fault she was married to a monster.

"I thought you said your name was…"

"I lied," she said. "My name's Ruby and I'm your daughter. My mother is the woman you raped when you were a teenager."

Grant looked shocked but not guilty. Ruby supposed she should have guessed he wasn't the type of man to have a conscience.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking…"

"You raped Charlie when she was just a kid!" Ruby yelled bitterly. "She was younger than me and you raped her! You got her pregnant and you ruined her life! And now what? You've got this perfect little set up?"

"Grant, what is she talking about?" Sandra asked anxiously.

Ruby looked directly at her.

"You're married to a monster," she said. "He should never have even had the chance to meet you. He should be in jail, preferably being abused by the other inmates!"

"Right, that's enough!" Grant snapped. "I don't know who you are or what the hell you're talking about you can get out of my house!"

He moved towards her. She recoiled, assuring him that she was going. At the front door, she turned back and curtly advised Sandra to leave too, if she didn't want to end up Grant's next victim the next time she didn't want to put out.

Grant moved towards her. She ran out of the house, cursing herself for not coming up with an escape plan. She'd put so much effort into getting to the city and rehearsing everything she wanted to say to her 'father' that she'd forgotten that she would have to leg it out of there once she'd said her piece.

"Ruby!" yelled a voice.

She looked up in shock to see her mother's little, blue car pulling up. Geoff opened the back door. With Grant hurrying out of the house behind her, she didn't hesitate in jumping in. Driven by Charlie, the car screeched away.

* * *

_Next time… Ruby's actions have far reaching repercussions…_


	34. Chapter 34

_Hi everyone. Sorry for the lack of update over the weekend. I won't be updating tomorrow as I have a hospital appointment and I'll be in London all day but I'll back with you on Wednesday. I hope you enjoy this one though. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Thirty Four**

"What are you all doing here?" Ruby gasped, still reeling from everything that had just happened.

Joey whirled around in her seat while Charlie focussed hard on the road ahead.

"What are _we _doing here?" she demanded. "What are _you _doing here, Ruby? What the hell were you thinking?"

Charlie was relieved that Joey seemed to be saying everything that she was thinking. It meant that she didn't have to be the one to say it.

"I…" Ruby faltered.

She looked at Geoff, who refused to help her. Having seen the level of distress Charlie in particular had gone through, he knew now more than ever that his girlfriend had made a terrible choice by coming to meet her father. And he was worried about the stress Charlie was under in her condition – and Joey, for that matter.

"Well?" Joey said. "What the hell are you doing out here?"

"I just wanted to meet him…" Ruby said.

Tears welled in Charlie's eyes but she fought them back, concentrating on the road ahead. The last thing they needed was an accident – they had more precious cargo than themselves.

"Why?" Joey yelled, startling all of them. "Why would you want to meet someone like that? You _know _what he did to Charlie! You _know _he's evil, Ruby!"

Ruby burst into tears.

"I wanted to tell him that," she sobbed. "I wanted to make him face what he'd done. I wanted to tell him I hated him and that he's a monster."

Geoff took pity on her and put his arm around her shoulders. Tears spilled down Charlie's cheeks. She wiped them away. They didn't have time to pull over. She just needed to get them back safely to Summer Bay as quickly as possible.

"I'm sorry," Ruby wept.

Joey softened. She reached out and touched her hand. Ruby held on tightly to it and apologised again.

"I just wanted to…"

"You shouldn't have," Joey said gently. "But… well, at least it's because you hate him and not because…"

"I don't ever want a relationship with him or anything," Ruby assured them all. "I do hate him."

She turned to her mother.

"I hate him for everything he did to you, Charlie," she said.

The driver nodded quietly.

"I'm sorry," Ruby repeated.

She sank against Geoff, who held her tight. Joey turned back to sit more comfortably in her seat, facing the front again. She gently touched Charlie's thigh. Charlie continued to drive.

* * *

Charlie, Joey and Ruby hadn't been home long. They'd dropped Geoff off at his house and then returned to their own home to try and talk things through. Ruby was meeker than anybody had ever seen her. It was almost unsettling.

The three of them had just sat down at the kitchen table, with hot drinks to calm their nerves, when there was an urgent knock at the door. All three women glanced at each other, confused as to who could be calling for them.

"Maybe it's Geoff…" Ruby mused.

She stood and headed towards the front door. Charlie and Joey followed her, wanting to be polite to whoever it was but also to make it clear that now wasn't a good time.

"I need to talk to you," their visitor said to Ruby.

Charlie panicked the moment she saw Grant standing there. Ruby froze. Joey leapt forward in order to shut the door on him. There was no way that that monster was going to enter her home.

"Wait!" he yelled, forcing the door back.

It hit her in the face, knocking her to the ground. Charlie leapt into action. She kicked the door shut and ordered Ruby to lock it up tight. Grateful for the first time that her parents were oddly paranoid about security, Ruby bolted every lock she could. Charlie was already on her knees, helping Joey up, desperately checking that she was okay.

"The door hit…" Joey managed, touching her bump.

Charlie tried not to show how frightened she was. Their attention was caught by Grant banging frantically on the window.

"Charlie!" he yelled. "You bitch! That girl told me what you've been saying about me!"

He caught Ruby looking stricken at him through the glass.

"It's not true," he told her. "If I'm your father it's because your precious mother is a slut. Nothing else."

"Ruby, call an ambulance and the police," Charlie demanded, still trying to tend to Joey.

The teenager just kept staring at the angry man outside.

"Ruby!" Charlie shouted.

It jolted her into action. With trembling hands, she pulled out her phone and obeyed orders.

"We're calling the police!" Charlie screamed towards the window. "Stay out there if you like. I'd love to see you behind bars where you belong!"

He slammed his fists hard on the glass. A crack appeared but it didn't break. Then he disappeared.

* * *

"Charlie, what happened?" Angelo asked.

He and Watson had followed the ambulance down to the hospital, where Joey was waiting to be seen by Judy.

"Can't this wait?" Charlie snapped. "I need to be with Joey."

He looked frustrated. As usual, he was like a dog with a bone. A lot of compassion seemed to have been drained from him since he'd last lived in Summer Bay. Now, he just got tunnel vision when he was working on a case.

"Yes, it can wait," Watson said, stepping in. "We'll go back to your place and check on Ruby for you. In the meantime, you just look after Joey and baby, okay? We'll come and find you tomorrow to make a statement."

Charlie smiled her thanks, touching her friend's hand briefly. Then she hurried off to where Joey was sat on her hospital bed, looking pale and anxious.

"What if after everything, I've fucked everything up at the last minute?" Joey asked sadly.

Charlie caught hold of her hand immediately. She lifted it and kissed it, reaching out to stroke her hair.

"Everything will be fine," she assured her, hoping that Judy would arrive soon to confirm everything.

"But what if it's not?" Joey asked. "What if I've killed her?"

A sob escaped her. Charlie gathered her hurriedly into her arms, kissing the top of her head.

* * *

Back at home, Ruby's mind was reeling. She was consumed with guilt over everything that had happened that day and cursed herself for not being able to leave well enough alone. Suddenly she knew just how lucky she was to have Charlie and Joey and the babies, to have Geoff and her friends and the happy life they lived in Summer Bay. Suddenly it no longer mattered that Charlie was her Mum and had lied about being her sister. Suddenly it didn't matter who her biological father was. Now, all that mattered was their family.

Unfortunately, she'd realised too late. She _had _gone to find her father, even if her intentions had been honourable. Grant Bledcoe, the man she considered the epitome of evil, now knew where they lived. Pregnant Joey had been rushed to hospital trying to stop him breaking in. And it was all Ruby's fault.

* * *

"Of course you haven't killed her," Charlie assured Joey gently. "Come on, she's a member of our family. She's automatically a fighter."

She smiled. Joey smiled weakly back at her but her heart wasn't in it.

"Charlie, I don't know if I can do this," she admitted.

Charlie looked confused.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know if I can be a Mum to Sarah."

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and Judy try to help Joey through her crisis while Ruby gets a visitor…_


	35. Chapter 35

_Sorry for my absence these last couple of days. And for those waiting for emails from me, I do apologise. I will get back to you as soon as I can. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Thirty Five**

Rather bewildered, Charlie came to sit on the bed beside Joey. She took both of her hands and looked into her eyes.

"What are you talking about, Joey?" she asked.

"When you're a parent, your first instinct is meant to be to protect your child," Joey ventured. "And I didn't do that today. I let her get hurt, potentially. I put her at risk."

"Joey, those were extreme circumstances today…"

"I still did it, Charlie," Joey insisted. "I shouldn't have tried to close that door. I…"

"We were in danger," Charlie pointed out. "All of us – including Sarah. You acted on instinct."

"That's my point," Joey said. "My instinct should be to protect this one."

She touched her bump.

"Instead, I let myself fall on top of my bump," she said, tears forming in her eyes. "I hurt her. I let her down."

Charlie reached out to hold her.

"You didn't let her down, Joey," she insisted.

"I did!" Joey sobbed. "I'm going to be a terrible mother, Charlie. And I don't think… I don't think I can face that."

"What… what are you saying?" Charlie asked anxiously.

"I don't know if I can keep her after all," Joey said sadly.

* * *

Ruby was relieved when there was a knock on the door, having been waiting in for someone to come and fix the crack in the window. She had been hoping it would all be fixed before Charlie and Joey returned from the hospital so that at least they wouldn't have to deal with any of it.

"Hi," she greeted, opening up.

She froze when she found Grant Bledcoe standing there.

"Ruby, I need to talk to you," he said urgently

She tried to close the door on him but he forced his way into the house.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he insisted.

"Stop threatening me then!" she snapped.

He kept his foot in the door but held his hands up as if they were a white flag.

"I don't mean to threaten you," he told her. "I just want to talk."

"I have nothing to say to you and nothing I want to hear either," she said.

"That's funny because you had a hell of lot to say to my wife and I earlier," he replied.

She glared at him.

"You're a rapist and a monster and I don't want anything to do with you," she snapped.

"Then why did you elbow your way into my life?" he wanted to know. "Why come and find me if you didn't want to know me?"

"Because I wanted to tell you what I thought of you," she replied.

"Look, I don't know what lies Charlie has told you about me but I am telling you now, none of it is true," Grant said. "I didn't rape anyone. I would never ever treat a woman like that. I'm not the person you think I am. And I certainly never knew you existed. But now that I do, I would love the opportunity to get to know you, Ruby. And I'm desperate for the chance to explain my side of what happened between your mother and I."

Ruby hesitated.

* * *

Charlie and Joey were interrupted by the arrival of Judy, coming to make sure that everything was alright with the baby.

"Have you been in the wars again, young lady?" the midwife teased.

She frowned when she caught the tension in the room and the state that Joey was in.

"I'm sorry," she said quickly. "Why don't you talk me through it?"

"We're having a crisis about the future," Charlie told her.

"What kind of crisis?" Judy wondered.

"I don't think I'm cut out to be a mother," Joey admitted.

"Oh, Joey," Judy sighed kindly. "You're going to be a wonderful mother. I don't even know you that well and I already know that."

Charlie smiled, retaining hold of her girlfriend's hand.

"How do you know?" Joey asked quietly.

"Do you love your little girl?" Judy asked.

"Yes," Joey said.

"Then you're going to be a wonderful mother," Judy said.

"But it's not as simple as that," Joey protested.

"It is," Judy insisted. "Right now, that's all that little one needs. She needs you to love her."

"Today, she needed me to protect her," Joey argued. "And I didn't do it. I let her get hurt."

"Well, shall we find out about that first, before we start jumping to conclusions?" Judy suggested.

Charlie and Joey both nodded.

* * *

"Look, don't make a decision now," Grant said. "But honestly, whatever your mother told you to demonise me, to make you hate me… it's not true. I didn't rape her. I've never treated women with anything but respect and love in all my life. You've met my wife. Do you think she'd still be with me, let me anywhere near my twins if I was the person Charlie was describing?"

Ruby didn't reply. She felt sick and confused. Her head was spinning.

"I can tell you now that she wouldn't," Grant said, answering himself. "I'd have two more kids out there that I'd never have anything to do with."

Ruby swallowed.

"But I really don't want another day to go by without knowing you, Ruby," he said imploringly. "I hate that what, sixteen years have gone by?"

She nodded mutely.

"Sixteen years have gone by without having you in my life," he said. "If Charlie is being honest about you being my daughter then I've missed out on so much."

He reached for her hand. She jerked it away, feeling like she had been burned. He didn't persist with the physical contact.

"_We've _missed out on so much," he added instead. "I'd really love the chance to get to know you, Ruby. And I really need to tell you my side of the story. It's not fair that you only ever hear whatever your Mum's been telling you all these years."

His words stung unintentionally. It wasn't like Charlie had been telling her anything all these _years_. All of this had happened over a matter of months. And that made it hurt all the more. Her head began to swim.

"Look, I'll be down at the beach for the next few hours," Grant said. "Come and find me if you want to talk. Or… here's my card."

He dug into his wallet and pulled out a small business card and handed it over. She felt like a traitor just accepting it.

"I hope you'll call or come and find me," he said.

Then he left.

* * *

"Well, Baby Sarah is perfectly happy and healthy," Judy confirmed, once the image was up on the screen for both Charlie and Joey to see. "Everything looks just perfect to me."

"She's not injured or anything?" Joey asked anxiously.

"Nope," Judy said. "You can hear that strong heartbeat, can't you?"

"Yes," Charlie and Joey replied in unison.

"And everything else is perfectly in order," Judy confirmed. "And looking at measurements, she's weighing in at 4.3 pounds now and measuring at forty three centimetres. Everything is looking really good."

"I really didn't hurt her?" Joey asked.

"Of course you didn't, Jo," Charlie said, desperate to encourage her.

"Look at her," Judy agreed. "She's moving around. She's happy."

Joey couldn't help but smile.

"So, why don't we talk through all this distress?" Judy suggested. "What's going on?"

"I'm scared," Joey admitted.

She clutched Charlie's hand, afraid of being too far from her. Charlie lifted Joey's hand and kissed it.

"What are you scared of?" Judy asked, putting the scanning equipment away and offering her patient her undivided attention.

"I'm scared of being a bad Mum," Joey said sadly. "I'm scared of letting her down. I'm scared of not being able to bond with her."

"But you already love her," Charlie pointed out.

"Exactly," Judy agreed. "That's already the perfect start."

Joey remained uncertain but at least a little comforted.

"It's understandable that you're scared," Judy said. "It would be worrying if you _weren't_. But everything you're uncertain of… it'll come."

"But I put her at risk today," Joey reminded her. "I didn't protect her."

"You fell," Charlie argued. "It was an accident."

"I threw myself at the door as if I wasn't pregnant," Joey countered.  
"Because you were trying to protect everyone – Sarah included – from an evil, evil man," Charlie insisted. "You _were _protecting her."

"I think you need to listen to your partner," Judy said. "She's making a lot of sense."

Joey sighed heavily and leant against Charlie.

"I just don't want to mess this up," she said, tears creeping out.

Charlie hugged her closer.

"You won't," she said.

"You won't," Judy agreed. "And the best thing you can do to ensure that right now is to just relax and take as much stress out of your life as you can, okay?"

Joey nodded, her heart still heavy.

* * *

After the man had come around to fix the window, Ruby paced the house. She clutched her phone, and the card containing her biological father's phone number. Should she go and see him? Should she stay away? Hadn't she caused enough pain today? But she wanted to hear what he had to say. She was beyond confused. She headed towards the door, still debating whether to walk through it or not. She stopped when Charlie and Joey arrived back home.

* * *

_Next time… Joey bonds with her bump, Ruby makes a decision and Charlie struggles at work…_


	36. Chapter 36

_I will be back on Monday so I hope you all have a good weekend. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Thirty Six**

"That feels good," Charlie sighed happily.

She smiled contentedly, as Joey rubbed cocoa butter on her belly. She had reached twenty seven weeks – which both of them had started referring to as the itchy belly stage – which meant that it was her turn to borrow back the items she'd bought Joey a few weeks previously.

"It's my pleasure," Joey assured her, continuing to sooth her tummy.

"I assure you, it's mine," Charlie grinned.

Joey leant closer and kissed her softly on the mouth.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too," Charlie whispered back.

They kissed again.

* * *

Ruby was eating breakfast in the kitchen when the couple emerged from their bedroom. It had been a difficult week and things were still a little awkward between them. Everyone had been trying to make things nice again and Charlie and Joey both understood now that Ruby had been attempting to do good by contacting Grant. But the repercussions of her actions had been hard on all of them.

"How's your tummy?" Ruby asked.

"A bit less itchy, thanks," Charlie said. "And the baby likes it when he gets all the attention."

She grinned, sitting down to her annoyingly decaffeinated coffee.

"He's going to get ever such a lot of that when he arrives," Joey chuckled.

"You bet, he is," Charlie agreed. "Not to mention little Sarah!"

Ruby grinned.

"They're going to be very happy babies," she said.

She finished eating her toast, trying not to feel burdened. She could feel Grant's business card burning in her pocket. There was a voice in her head telling her to get rid of it but she just couldn't bring herself to do it. And that made her feel terribly guilty.

* * *

Once Charlie had gone to work and Ruby had gone to school, Joey had the day to herself. She'd booked the day off work, on the advice of both Charlie and Judy in order to try and bond with Sarah and spend time with her as a bump before she arrived in the world. At thirty five weeks, it really wasn't long before she was actually there, a living, breathing human being, looking to Joey to be her mother.

Joey was still terrified, still wavering and scared. But she was desperate to step up and be what Sarah needed her to be. So she was going to do whatever it took.

"Okay, little one," she said to her bump. "What shall we do on our special day of fun? I mean, I have a heap of housework to do and that's not that fun but I guess you'll have to get used to that kind of thing. Because you're going to be part of my every moment. It's going to be me and you forever and ever."

She genuinely smiled at the thought.

* * *

"How are you doing now?" Watson asked, popping into her office that morning.

Charlie looked up from her desk and put her pen down, smiling.

"Better," she said.

Her colleague had kindly been checking on her each morning, wanting to make sure that she was okay.

"And that guy hasn't been anywhere near any of you since that day?" Watson checked.

"Nobody's seen him," Charlie confirmed. "We've been really vigilant but I think he's given up and gone back to the city. Hopefully we won't hear from him again."

The truth was, she was still scared. Aside from the night she had actually conceived Ruby, seeing Grant again had been the scariest moment of her life. It was not something she wanted to repeat.

* * *

During her first break of the day, Ruby broke away from her friends and sat on a bench alone. She took out Grant's number and stared at it for the millionth time. Feeling like a complete traitor, she pulled out her phone and dialled. She just had to hear his side of the story.

* * *

"I'm really sorry that I've struggled with you, you know?" Joey mused.

She was sat in the back garden, enjoying the sunshine, although she was careful not to get too hot. She had a big glass of water and a nice bar of chocolate with her and it felt good to relax for a change and not feel rushed off her feet.

"I hope you understand that it's never been that I don't love you or don't want you because I do," she said. "I love you so much and I really do want you. Even when I wobbled last week, it was never that I didn't want to be your Mum, it was that I was scared that I'd be rubbish at it. I was scared of letting you down. And that really is because I love you so much."

She sighed and rubbed her belly affectionately.

"You came from the worst thing that ever happened to me," she said. "But you don't need to know about that yet. When you're older, we can sit down and talk about it. I'll explain it to you and be honest and I'll make you understand. But the thing I'll make you understand most is that no matter the horror of what I went through that day, the joy of you, the joy of becoming your Mum, makes it worth it."

She looked down at her tummy and then closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of Sarah moving around. It felt like she was communicating somehow.

"I promise you, Sarah, I will do everything I can to be my best for you," she said. "I love you. I love you so much. You mean everything to me."

* * *

"Ruby, I'm so happy you called," Grant said eagerly, once his daughter had got through to him. "I've been glued to my phone all week, just in case."

He sounded genuine. Ruby was more confused than ever. She wanted to despise him. She wanted to be clearly on Charlie's side but he was compelling her to believe in him and that was throwing her into a complete spin.

"I want to hear your side of the story," she told him, keeping her voice hostile.

She didn't want to convey any warmth.

"Can we meet?" he asked hopefully.

* * *

"We've been called out to a road accident," Angelo announced, entering Charlie's office without knocking.

He never seemed to have any manners.

"I'm not feeling very well," Charlie replied.

"Well, there's nobody else available," Angelo replied.

He didn't have much time for pregnancy complaints. It wasn't like she was actually sick, as far as he was concerned. She was the one that had got herself into this mess – and with Hugo Austen of all people. The mere thought disgusted him.

"I really don't think I can go," Charlie said.

"Charlie, you're either here to do your job or you're not," he snapped.

She considered arguing with him about rank but decided she didn't have the energy to fight. If she attended the accident then perhaps she could slope off early. She really didn't feel well.

* * *

"And it's going to be so awesome," Joey continued.

She had moved from the garden and into the kitchen to start preparing dinner for herself, Charlie and Ruby. Having had the day at home, she thought she would do something more lavish than normal, something more time consuming and detailed.

"See, I never had that much of a family," she said. "I mean, I did. I had a Mum and a Dad and a brother but Dad and my brother Brett… I never got on with. They didn't like me. And Brett, well, he only lives across the road right now and we _still _don't get along. And Dad's gone now. Mum was amazing though. I loved her so much and she loved me but she died long ago now. She's the one you're named after. She would have loved you so much."

She smiled wistfully.

"But you're going to have the most amazing family, Sarah," she added. "You've got me and Charlie. That's two Mums! And you'll have a ready-made sister in Ruby and even though she's adjusting from being your aunt to your sister, she's really excited about meeting you. And then there's your brother. He'll be along just a few weeks after you so you'll have a playmate so soon after you're born. How wonderful is that? You'll be like twins."

She grinned to herself as she prepared to chop vegetables.

"You'll have the company and bond throughout your life that I always longed to have," she said. "I think that makes you a pretty lucky, special, little girl."

* * *

Ruby was lost in her own thoughts throughout the day and could hardly concentrate on her school work. She was distracted throughout classes and conversations. Grant had arranged to visit her in Summer Bay after school to tell her his side of the story over what had happened with Charlie, how Ruby had come to exist.

* * *

At the road traffic accident, Charlie was feeling increasingly unwell. She tried hard to focus on what was going on, on stopping other traffic while they cleared the site so that the injured parties could get safely to the hospital. But she felt ill and Angelo didn't seem to notice or care. She wished she was working with Watson. She wished she was at home with Joey. She passed out.

* * *

_Next time… Joey rushes to the hospital to be with Charlie but Ruby is otherwise engaged…_


	37. Chapter 37

_Sorry for the abrupt break. It wasn't planned. I had to rush the cat to the vet on Friday and then yesterday was a rather busier day than I expected. But anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter. Love, IJKS xxx_

**Chapter Thirty Seven**

"Please can you go faster?" Joey asked urgently.

The taxi driver looked at her in his rear view mirror.

"I can't break the speed limit, love," he barked.

The lie popped into her head and out of her mouth before she could stop it.

"I think my waters are about to break," she told him.

He shot forward. She was at the hospital within minutes.

* * *

"Charlie Buckton!" Joey shrieked. "I need to see my partner, Charlie Buckton!"

"Joey, she's right down here," Judy said calmly. "And she's fine."

Joey let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding. She'd been in a state of anxiety ever since Angelo had called to say that her girlfriend had been taken to the hospital with some sort of pregnancy complication.

"Is she okay?" she asked worriedly.

"She's fine," Judy repeated. "Come this way."

Joey nodded. She was shaking, as Judy took her hand and led her down to the corridor and into a side room where Charlie was lying in a bed, hooked up to monitors. But thankfully, she didn't look terribly unwell. But she did look pale.

"What happened?" Joey asked weakly. "You seemed fine this morning."

"It looks like Charlie has developed a condition called Obstetric Cholestasis," Judy explained.

"What's that?" Joey asked, blind panic threatening to take over all over again.

"We're running some tests but honestly, the worst thing you can do at the moment, is panic," Judy said gently but firmly. "It can quite probably be sorted out with medication and monitoring."

Joey exhaled slowly. She closed her eyes, clutching Charlie's hand and warning her own blood pressure to calm down. There was no good to come from her upsetting Sarah as well.

* * *

Ruby was nervous as she ditched her last class of the day in order to meet up with Grant. She felt guilty and still terribly torn over what she was doing. But she also felt compelled to at least meet the man who formed half of her genetic make-up and at least hear his side of the story.

Joey had tried to call her earlier in the day and she'd felt stung with guilt so she'd turned her phone off. Now, she felt a little nervous and vulnerable. She was about to turn it back on again when Grant appeared at the spot they'd agreed to on the beach. He looked overjoyed to see her, prompting her to feel torn all over again.

* * *

"Do you think Ruby will come after school?" Charlie asked.

She and Joey were in their hospital room, waiting for Charlie's test results, although Charlie was hoping to leave and go home as soon as possible.

"Hopefully," Joey said, still sitting by her girlfriend's side, where she had remained all afternoon. "I called on my way to the hospital but I just got her voicemail. I've kept my phone on though so she'll probably call after school. Hopefully we'll know more then."

Charlie nodded and snuggled up against her arm. She sighed and rested a hand on her tummy, hoping that everything would be alright with her son.

They looked up when Judy returned to the room.

"You look cheerful," Joey said curiously. "Are we to take that as a good sign?"

"Yes, for the most part," Judy said, getting to the point. "You do have Obstetric Cholestasis, Charlie but it's only mild. We'll give you medication and you'll need monitoring but we can send you home. You won't need anything more extreme than that."

Earlier, she had run them through all sorts of options, including early inducement, which had rather horrified them.

"So, the baby's safe and…?" Charlie asked.

"Perfectly safe," Judy confirmed. "Don't worry. We won't let anything bad happen to him."

* * *

Ruby and Grant sat awkwardly side by side in the sunshine.

"I don't know what your Mum told you about that night…" Grant ventured.

"She told me you raped her," Ruby snapped bitterly.

Grant swallowed and nodded. Ruby watched his every move trying to read innocence or guilt in every single thing he did.

"I didn't," he informed her. "We were at a party… _my _party. My parents were away for the weekend so I thought I'd have a laugh, you know? Get my mates round, my girlfriend. We were just kids… thought we were older and wiser than we were. It… it shouldn't have happened except for the fact that we ended up with you. But it _was _consensual, Ruby."

He turned to look at her, meeting her gaze as if to prove that he wasn't lying. She was startled and didn't know what to do.

"We'd been dancing and drinking and mucking around. We went upstairs and just… did it. It wasn't romantic or even that special really, I'm sorry to say. It was Charlie's first time, or so she said – not necessarily what I'd heard on the rumour mill."

"Wait, I _thought _you were a couple," Ruby interjected. "Didn't you _know _each other?"

"Not that well," Grant admitted. "I was a typical teenage boy and she was a… good time girl."

Ruby shook her head.

"No way," she denied. "That's not the Charlie I knew growing up."

"What about now?" he asked, having done some research over the last couple of weeks.

"Now?" Ruby asked. "Now, she's in a fully committed relationship and expecting a baby."

"What, with that woman?" Granted sneered. "How did she get knocked up, Ruby? Didn't she cheat on the woman she's so apparently committed to?"

"That was a mistake," Ruby said defensively.

"Well, that mistake says to me that not a whole lot has changed from when I knew her," Grant remarked.

"Or maybe you damaged her so much that she's never quite been able to function since you knew her," Ruby said protectively. "Since you raped her."

"I didn't rape her!" Grant snapped. "I didn't! Do you have any idea how much it hurts to be brandished as that kind of monster, Ruby? To have your own daughter speak of you that way?"

"I don't know you," Ruby said. "But I do know Charlie…"

"Why do you call her that?" Grant asked.

The question took her immediately off guard.

"What… what do you mean?" she asked, her voice wobbling.

She looked away from him and then back uncertainly.

"Why do you call her Charlie and not Mum?" he asked.

"She… we…"

"She didn't even raise you, did she?" Grant realised.

He tried not to look pleased.

* * *

Discharged but not able to get through to Ruby, Charlie and Joey decided just to go home.

"I hope we don't get the same cab driver as I had on the way here," Joey mumbled, as they headed back out into reception.

Charlie paused and eyed her curiously.

"Why?" she wondered.

Joey chewed her lip hesitantly.

"Um… I might have told him I was in labour," she admitted.

Charlie burst out laughing. She stopped when she spotted Angelo waiting for them. Realising he had been noticed, he stopped up and headed over.

"How are you?" he asked.

"Have you been waiting here the whole time?" Charlie asked, surprised.

"I was worried," he admitted. "You just passed out."

For a moment, she saw the old Angelo, the one she'd got on with so well – before he'd gone to prison and changed into someone who didn't seem to care about anyone else anymore.

"I'm okay," Charlie assured him. "And so is the baby."

He nodded. He didn't really care about the baby. Mostly because it was Hugo's. And partly because it represented the fact that Charlie was unattainable to him now. She and Joey and Ruby and the babies were a complete unit and nobody else was welcome.

"Well, I thought I'd give you a lift home," he offered.

"Thank you," both women replied.

* * *

"So, what is your family setup?" Grant asked, eager for more information on both Ruby and Charlie. "She's your Mum but you don't call her that?"

"I don't feel very comfortable sharing that with you," Ruby replied stiffly.

She twisted her hands together, feeling like she had made a mistake by meeting him. She knew if they found out about it, Joey and especially Charlie would be desperately hurt.

"Ruby, I just want to get to know you," Grant begged. "Please?"

"Charlie has always been in my life," Ruby told him hesitantly. "But it's only recently that she's been a proper Mum to me. It's… complicated."

Grant stored up the nugget of information to use later.

"So, she's not been there for you your whole life and yet you're still trusting her on this stupid rape thing?" he asked.

"She _has _been there for me," Ruby corrected him. "It's just complicated."

"You said that already," Grant pointed out.

"Well, it is," Ruby said. "And I know… I know that Charlie wouldn't cry rape. I know she wouldn't lie about something like that."

"How do you know?"

"For starters, she knows too much about that stuff."

"What do you mean?"

"She supported Joey when she was raped…"

Ruby regretted the words the moment she said them. What happened to Joey was private. She didn't need to be telling this man about it.

"So, your step-mum cried rape too, did she?" Grant asked.

"No!" Ruby snapped, leaping to her feet. "How dare you say that?"

Grant stood also, holding his hands up in submission.

"I'm sorry," he apologised. "I just… this is hard for me, okay? What am I supposed to think? I've suddenly been accused of the worst crime imaginable when all I did was have consensual sex with my girlfriend sixteen years ago. And her girlfriend's been raped too at some point. What am I meant to do with that, Ruby? How am I meant to process any of this? I know I didn't do anything wrong and I'm desperate for you to believe me. I'm a good man. I promise you."

He took her hand. For a moment, she let him.

"Listen, I have to get going," she said, breaking away. "They'll be wondering where I am if I don't come home on time. I don't want them asking questions."

Grant nodded but looked disappointed.

"Can I see you again?" he asked.

"Maybe," she replied, hurrying away.

* * *

Ruby arrived back just as Angelo dropped Charlie and Joey home.

"Charlie, Joey, are you guys okay?" the teenager asked worriedly, sensing that things were not normal.

"We've been at the hospital," Joey explained. "We left you a message."

Ruby's guilt intensified, recalling the phone call from Joey that she had ignored. She looked at her mother, who looked pale, even though she tried to keep a smile on her face.

"I'm fine," Charlie promised. "Just a little bit poorly but everything's alright. So long as we five have each other, everything's alright."

* * *

_Next time… Charlie and Joey are concerned about guilty Ruby…_


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter Thirty Eight**

"What's all this in aid of?" Ruby asked curiously when she arrived home to what looked like a special dinner.

It had been a couple of weeks and Charlie was much better after her collapse at work. She'd had to take a couple of days off but she was much better than she had been. Since then, she'd had a meeting with her superiors to discuss her role at work until her maternity leave kicked in a few months later.

"We wanted to make a bit of a fuss of you," Charlie replied, welcoming her daughter to the table. "You seem to have been a bit… withdrawn lately."

The teenager immediately felt guilty. She had been withdrawn lately. The truth was, she could hardly stand to be around her parents. She was overwhelmed with self-loathing every time she looked at them now that she had been meeting up with Grant in secret. And yet she hadn't stopped herself from doing it.

"I'm okay," she assured them.

"Good," Joey said, bringing the plates to the table. "It's good that you're okay. But we still want to make a fuss of you."

The three of them sat down together.

"We're just worried that everything's been about us and the babies lately," Charlie ventured. "And we're concerned that we might have left you out. If we have, we're really sorry. We want to make it up to you."

Ruby felt guiltier than ever. For a fortnight, Charlie and Joey had evidently been feeling bad for neglecting her and all along, she had been betraying them. _I'm never seeing him again_, she decided.

"I promise I don't feel left out," she said. "I know things have been tough lately. You've been sick and we're gearing up for the new arrivals and everything. It's been hospital trip after hospital trip and…"

"Exactly," Joey said. "We haven't been giving you the attention you deserve. We don't want it to be like that, Ruby. We've hardly even seen you."

"It's fine," Ruby said. "Honestly."

"So, what have you been up to lately anyway?" Charlie asked.

"Nothing," Ruby said quickly.

The guilt struck her hard.

"I mean, just school and stuff," she said, focussing on her food. "Homework. Hanging out with Geoff."

She grinned, as was expected of her, although if she was being really honest, she hadn't spent as much time with her boyfriend as she would have her parents believe. She also hadn't let him in on the secret that she had been spending time with Grant. She knew he wouldn't approve. _As he shouldn't, _she thought to herself.

The truth was, she didn't approve of herself. She felt unsettled every time she saw her biological father. She'd met him on three occasions since that first time, the time that Charlie had been rushed into hospital, and each time he had tried to convince her that her mother had been either lying or confused about what had really happened that night. Ruby was still torn over what to believe.

"How's all that going?" Joey asked. "Still on cloud nine?"

"Yeah, we're pretty solid," Ruby said. "I wish he was still at school though. It's all still a bit awkward there with Xavier and everything."

Charlie and Joey nodded in empathy.

"I'm sure things will settle," Charlie said. "I mean, situations tend to sort themselves out."

"Yep," Joey agreed. "I mean, I can actually be civil to Hugo these days. Who knew that could happen?"

Charlie touched her hand gently. She still felt terrible for all she had put her girlfriend through but she was relieved that they had been able to put their pain in the past.

"How is it all going to work with you guys?" Ruby wondered. "I mean, is Hugo really going to be a Dad or what?"

"I don't really know," Charlie admitted. "He's pretty vague about everything. But Martha is very keen and we want to give them that chance, don't we?"

"Yeah," Joey said. "I mean, we're not proposing shared custody or anything but we're offering Hugo the chance to know his son if he wants it."

"What if he demanded shared custody?" Ruby asked.

"We doubt he would," Charlie said. "I mean, he barely wanted to know the sex and he hasn't attended a single appointment. I wouldn't trust him, to be honest. But we do want him and especially Martha to have a relationship with the baby if they want one."

"I think it's great that you're trying to make it all work," Ruby said. "It's quite the complicated set up!"

"Well, simple would be boring!" Joey chuckled. "Ooh! Hang on! Sorry!"

She dashed off.

"What's wrong with her?" Ruby asked a little worriedly.

"She has to pee for around the fifty thousandth time today," Charlie explained. "We went for an appointment earlier today and the baby's head's engaged now, which means she's properly prepared for labour. That's really great, for obvious reasons and also because Joey can breathe and eat better. But it also means she's peeing for Australia!"

Ruby laughed hard, prompting Charlie to follow suit.

"Let me guess," Joey said, re-entering the room. "You're laughing at the fact that Sarah is using my bladder as a squeeze toy."

"Something like that," Charlie admitted. "Sorry, sweetheart."

She reached around to hug her girlfriend before she sat down again.

"It's alright," Joey said. "Everything that's happening to me will soon be happening to you."

Charlie frowned.

"So, Sarah's all set to make her way into the world?" Ruby asked.

"Yep," Joey said. "I mean, it'll be a few weeks yet until she's full term but she's in the right place so we're all set to go, go go!"

She grinned. Everything seemed to be taking shape nicely. She was confident that nothing would now go wrong.

"Oh, it's all perky for you, isn't it?" Charlie complained mildly. "I've got my conditions and my heavy legs…"

"Heavy legs?" Ruby queried.

"Yeah," Charlie sighed. "Apparently, it's common. My legs just feel all heavy and horrible. Judy suggested plenty of things I can be doing for them."

"Sorry, _you _can be doing for them?" Joey interjected. "Who exactly, is doing all the lovely massages and applying the cold compresses and stuff?"

"You are," Charlie mumbled.

"And who is reaping the benefits?"

"I am."

"And who has to push a watermelon out of a delicate place?"

"You do."

"And who gets a lovely caesarean?"

"I do."

"Well, don't complain," Joey said with a cheeky grin.

"Caesareans aren't all that great," Charlie mumbled. "They're major surgery and…"

She pouted. Joey leant in and kissed her.

"I know," she said, assuring her that she was teasing. "We're in all of this together."

"Heavy legs and all?" Charlie asked.

"Heavy legs and all," Joey confirmed.

* * *

Angelo sat in his car, carefully watching the house that Hugo shared with Martha. It was the same thing he did most nights, trying to work out what the hell Hugo's game was. This was the whole reason he had returned to Summer Bay, to unearth a people smuggling ring he believed was operating out of the area. He believed that Hugo was the ringleader and he was determined to catch him out. But he felt like he was running out of time faster than ever now. Because he'd got Charlie pregnant. In just a couple of months, Hugo would be father to her child and then everything would be so much more serious.

* * *

In their bedroom, Charlie and Joey were giggling excitedly. They had read in their baby book that at twenty nine weeks, the baby could be aware of dramatic light changes outside. The suggestion was to shine a torch beam at the bump to test responses and Charlie's baby boy had indeed responded to the test. He kicked every time the light shone on Charlie's bump. And Sarah did the same when they tried it on her.

"Come in," they called when there was a knock on the door.

"Do I want to know what's going on in here?" Ruby asked.

The two women invited her in to join their torch test. Throughout the evening, Charlie and Joey had both been inviting her to engage with the babies as much as possible, both having still been convinced that her distance over the last fortnight was because they had been engrossed in themselves. Neither had any idea that she had been in touch with Grant. The thought had never occurred to them.

"This is so cool," Ruby said, perched on the edge of their bed. "It's weird. They're like… proper people."

"They are," Charlie mused. "You know, at this stage, this little one can actually play with the umbilical cord."

Ruby was amused at the thought.

"And this one takes up so much room that she doesn't even kick anymore," Joey said. "She more like… rumbles."

* * *

That night in the city, Grant was pleased to receive a phone call from his daughter.

"Ruby, hi!" he greeted. "Are you up for another visit?"

"No," came a quiet voice on the other end of the line.

He frowned, sitting down on the edge of the spare bed he had been banished to. Ever since his first born had stormed into his home and branded him a rapist, he and had his wife had been having problems. He was now sleeping in the guest bedroom and they were barely speaking while she tried to figure out who her husband really was.

"What do you mean, no?" he asked, annoyed.

"I can't see you anymore," Ruby said.

"Why?"

"Because I love my Mum and whatever happened or didn't happen that night, my priority has to be her," she said. "It would hurt her to know that I was seeing you so I can't do it anymore so this has to be goodbye."

She hung up. Seething, he refused to let it lie.

* * *

_Next time… Grant returns, Angelo lets Charlie in on his secret and Joey tries to prepare for Sarah's arrival…_


End file.
